Lacrosse Lovers
by Symphony Solider
Summary: Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those shorts. Oh boy.
1. How This Mess Began

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 1-How This Mess Began**

_First PLL fic EVAH. So tell me if it sucks. And if it does I'll delete it. The idea's been playing around in my head for a while, so why not? Plus, the world needs more Ezra/Aria in it! Especially Ezra._

**I apologize in advance for any typos.**

**General POV**

"Miss Montgomery!" The unmistakable sound of Principal Kinney's voice rang through the halls. Aria's head shot up, almost hitting her head on the top of her heavily decorated locker. Her fingers glided her phone's keyboard, sending the message she was previously proofreading. After doing this she shoved her phone in her new vintage style purse. She pulled her head out of the privacy of her locker only seconds before the principal reached her.

"Yes, sir?" Aria asked as she spun on her heel, coming face-to-face with the tall, balding man who has deemed Rosewood High his since prehistoric times.

"Your brother is Mike, right?" she nodded. It probably wasn't even necessary, she realized after the fact, for she was only halfway into her head nodding when he continued, the very sound of his voice making the student passerbys walk a little quicker."He plays lacrosse, does he not?"

"Um, yeah, he does." The sound of the bell rang in Aria's ears. Saved by the bell. "That's my bell. I gotta run to class."

That was a total lie. This one of the two free periods of her day. But, since her and Ezra share the free period, it's more of her Ezra period than anything.

Turning on her heel, Aria basically made a run for it, but when the principal called her name, she sighed, stopping dead in her tracks. She turned and smiled at him, saying, "My class is this way, are you going to walk with me?" She didn't mean to sound rude or anything, but honestly, she just wanted him to go away. The only time Mr. Kinney came out of his small, crammed office is when he needs something from s student or teacher. Otherwise the only reason you even know Rosewood High has a principal is when you hear a sigh of defeat or a swear word come from the little office when he loses in internet solitaire.

Mr. Kinney ran in the most ungainly manner towards her, mumbling, in a voice that sounded almost certainly out of breath, about how rude kids nowadays were. The clicking of her heels and his gasps for breath awkwardly filled the silence they were trapped in for a minute or so, as they ventured to the other side of the school.

Aria offered up the nicest smile she could to him when she saw the numbers 105 next to an old wooden door. The door to her escape that's window will soon be covered by blinds and who will be locked tight so no one sees her kissing her English teacher.

She rested her hand on the door handle and sighed a sweet sigh of relief. "Well, this is my stop."

"Room 105…" He paused a moment, thinking hard. "That new teacher, Mr. Fritzen, correct?" He smiled broadly like he'd won the jackpot. Little did he know he was about to get voted off the island.

"There's no –r or –en. It's Fitz. F-I-T-Z."Aria spoke as if she were talking to a small child, but when the principal gave her his I'm-in-charge-and-I-can-give-you-detention look, she cleared her throat and added, "I mean, no sir, it's Mr.Fitz."

The principal fought the urge to roll his eyes and continued, "Ah, yes, Mr. Fitz. Wait, isn't this Mr. Fitz's free period?"

"Yes, and it's mine, but I'm working on an essay and need his help and experience. Is this a problem?"

"No, of course not, but-um-we should get back to your brother." Aria took her hand off the door handle, knowing this was going to be more bad than good. She then leaned against the door lightly, careful not to make the door creak and disturb Ezra who was probably grading papers on the other side of the door.

"Since Ian's… um missing-"

"Dead," Aria corrected without missing a beat. "Suffocated. Terrible, I know." It had only been a month since it happened, and everyone was fuzzy on the details. Mostly because they didn't believe the 4 girls who'd witnessed it all.

"Yes, and since he was lacrosse coach I-"

"Yes?" Aria was growing impatient. Time was ticking. Only 30 more minutes of her Ezra-period.

"Miss Montgomery, I was wondering if you'd be assistant coach on the lacrosse team." Aria's jaw dropped so Mr. Kinney took the opportunity to explain. "You played field hockey before you left for Iceland-which means you're fit and know what you're doing. And I heard that your dad coached the lacrosse team before you left? And you helped out? This makes you one of the best candidates for this position."

"Um, sir, with all due respect-"

"Before you say no, I understand that you're missing the required amount of hours of service to the school, since you dropped out of being stage manager in _The Bad Seed_? Miss Montgomery, it's March. This will give you the hours you need so you can go to the next grade."

Aria sucked a breath in and then blew it out heavily. "I assume I just look at Mike's schedule to know when I show up?"

Mr. Kinney placed a hand on Aria's shoulder. "That's a good girl." As he walked away Aria realized she didn't even know who the new head coach was.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria showed up at the school's field with Mike, a water cooler for all of the guys, a bag full of equipment, and a bad attitude. This was the last place she wanted to be right now. She'd rather be on Ezra's old leather couch, watching a movie. But that wouldn't have happened tonight anyway. Ezra said he had a last minute thing to do. Apparently it was essential if he wanted to work at Hollis.

"Aria!" She turned at the sound of her name, dropping the cooler in the process.

In a flat tone she muttered a, "Hey Noel." She tried. She really did. But she couldn't help it, she rolled her eyes.

Noel acted as if he hadn't seen her flip him off in her head and kept talking, "What are you doing here? Wanna see me get all sweaty?" Noel's eyes scanned over her body. Starting with her high ponytail, moving down to her low cut tank top-which he kept his eyes on a little longer than he should have- and stopping at her short shorts that she'd dug out of her closet for the last minute occasion.

Aria straightened the strap of the large duffel bag on her shoulder uncomfortably, which got Noel's eyes peeled off her body. "Oh believe me, that's the last thing I want. But I'm the new assistant coach so I guess I'll have to get use to it."

"Oh, you're the assistant coach?" Noel rubbed his neck uncomfortably saying in an almost-whisper, "So you're still into him?"

"Into…?"

Noel brought his face closer to Aria, whispering, "Ya know, Mr. F-"

A group of guys behind them started chanting, "Noel's got a girlfriend, Noel's got a girlfriend!" Noel and Aria jumped as far away from each other as humanly possible. The chant scared the shit out of them, especially Aria. She hadn't even heard what Noel said past, "Ya know…"

Noel told the guys to shut up, but Aria knew what would to the trick. "Hey guys, I'm the new assistant coach. And if you don't leave in point five seconds, I will make you run 20 laps around the whole school campus."

One of the guys stepped up. It was Davie. "You wouldn't dare…"

She got up in his face and challenged him, "Try me." That did do the trick as the rest of the group ran to the opposite side of the field, Davie running after them.

Aria turned back to Noel. "Extra credit?" Noel tried to be blunt in his hint, Aria could tell.

Aria rolled her eyes. "Yes, but what does that have to do with-"

Just then a loud whistle was heard. Noel and Aria's attention was brought to a young dark haired man with slightly tanned skin and a smile that Aria knew way too well.

"C'mon guys! Let's get this practice started!" He yelled into his bullhorn. "Can the new assistant coach please raise their hand? I wasn't informed on who it is. I just know it's a female student. So can you please raise your hand and blow your whistle?"

Noel was laughing hard as he grabbed Aria's hand and held it in the air and loudly blew the whistle that hung on her neck.

He made eye-contact with the last person he expected to see. Especially as the assistant coach.

"Ezra," Aria whispered so softly she could barely hear herself. And she could read his lips when he said, "Holy crap."

Holy crap indeed.

__

**There was chapter one! Did you like it? Hate it? Noel seems nice now, but you never know when he might get jealous… And the jealousy card will be played a lot in this story, just so you know.**

**I know my time line isn't exactly up-to-date with the show, but please ignore that small detail. :)**

**More Ezra/Aria in the next chapter! Intense talk about what to do is to come :O**

**Reviews are deeply appreciated.**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	2. Too Late To Back Out?

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 2-Too Late To Back Out?**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_"C'mon guys! Let's get this practice started!" He yelled into his bullhorn. "Can the new assistant coach please raise their hand? I wasn't informed on who it is. I just know it's a female student. So can you please raise your hand and blow your whistle?"_

_Noel was laughing hard as he grabbed Aria's hand and held it in the air and loudly blew the whistle that hung on her neck._

_He made eye-contact with the last person he expected to see. Especially as the assistant coach._

_"Ezra," Aria whispered so softly she could barely hear herself. And she could read his lips when he said, "Holy crap."_

_Holy crap indeed._

Aria just stood there for a second in shock. What made it worse was the tiny ding that came from her phone. She took her phone out of her bag and took her eyes off of Ezra' to read it.

**UNKNOWN**

**Wow! Forbidden lovers are both coaches? On the same team? With YOUR BROTHER? Coincidence? Nope. Have fun in hell! Xoxo -A**

Aria gasped. A… set this up?

A whole new wave of emotion washed over Aria. Now she was flat out pissed. She marched over to Ezra and dragged him to the outskirts of the field, so no one could hear. She told the guys that they needed a 'Coaches only conference.'

The second Aria stopped walking Ezra started running his mouth. "Okay, this is not my fault, so I don't know why you're so mad. I mean, we can make the best of this right? We've worked together before!"

"Yeah, and it ended with people suddenly leaving." Ezra sighed, Aria wasn't one to let things go. "And I was mad at you and you were beyond mad at me-"

"I wasn't mad I was-" Ezra's interruption was soon cut short. Ezra forgot that when Aria's mad, he doesn't get a lot of speaking time.

"Mad. Now, we both know we can't do this. We just can't function like this."

"But I can't drop out of this, I need to have prior school participation in order to word at Hollis." Aria opened her mouth to object, but Ezra beat her to the punch. "And directing a play and Poetry Club don't count."

"And I can't drop out because if I don't get these hours of service to the school, I can't move to the next grade!"

"That's a problem."

"Oh thanks I didn't notice." The sarcasm that dripped from her tone was extremely obvious, and her eyes rolled so heavily, Ezra was afraid they'd get stuck in the back of her head. She really didn't like being so rude to Ezra, but her day wasn't talking a turn for the better, and stress made her act vicious. "Sorry… I… we should go back."

"Okay." Ezra smiled a smile of pure amusement. What had they gotten themselves into?

"Why are you the lacrosse coach anyway bookworm?"

"I played lacrosse in high school."

Aria looked at him like he'd dropped off of Mars. "You-you played…? You were the water boy, right?" He rolled his eyes which made Aria laugh harder.

"No, I actually played. I was pretty good too. At first I only played it because I had to be in at least one extracurricular activity for school, but I got into it and it was pretty fun."

"Ooh, lacrosse in Maryland." For a reason unknown to Ezra, Aria thought it was hilarious he was from Maryland.

"What is up with you and Maryland?"

"It's cute how you think being from Maryland is normal."

Ezra just chuckled and brushed if off. "Can you come over tonight?" He asked his question in a voice just above a whisper, because they were nearing the team.

She responded in a voice at the same volume. "Well, I have to drop Mike off and-"

"I'll show you a few yearbooks and pictures of me playing lacrosse."

"I'll be there at eight."

Ezra smiled, cupping his hands together and yelling, "C'mon guys let's get going! Practice is officially started."  
><strong>PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLLPLL<strong>

"You want us to do what?" Noel asked. They'd made it to the end of practice: standard drills, lots of running, a little too much blowing of the whistle and trying again, but it was pretty average. Well, average until Ezra told them the last activity of the practice.

"Run around campus ten times, unless you can beat me," Ezra said slower, wondering if Noel had a hearing condition.

"Beat you in what?" Mike asked, rising from the crowd of boys.

"It'll be a one-on-one exercise. I'm going to start at one goal and run to the other with the ball."

"And…?"

"You try to stop me. If you do, you don't have to run. Ready? Who's first?"

"I'll go," Noel challenged, mumbling under his breath, "This is too easy."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Now, before I give you these you have to promise not to laugh. I know how Maryland people tickle your fancy, but-"

"Oh, gosh, just hand them over!" Aria made a lunge for Ezra who was only a few steps away, making them both fall on the couch. Aria ripped the yearbook open. "Okay, you graduated in 2004, so that means in 2002 you were a sophomore." Her finger grazed under the names as she read them. "Alice Fandgooser, George Fandle, Willow Firne, Ezra Fitz! Whoa. You look the exact same." Aria held up the yearbook to his face for comparison. "Did you age?"

"No, I stayed sixteen forever." Ezra chuckled at his own sarcasm, which at least made him _sound_ like a sixteen-year-old.

"You were sixteen in this picture? You were my age in this picture!"

"Stop it! You're making me feel old."

Aria flipped some pages and found some pictures of Ezra in action. "Whoa, no wonder you beat all of the guys at practice. You were like, the star of the team!"

"No, Peter Mhalens, now he was the star of the team. I just showed up at games and practices, and when I wasn't there I was reading a book or doing homework. The rest of the lacrosse guys were the big shots of the school. I was just the background guy."

Aria wasn't sure how to respond to that, so she just decided to kiss him. And soon enough the yearbook were forgotten and thrown across the apartment, they're way of getting them out of the way of their make out session.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Great practice you guys! See you later!" Aria yelled into Ezra's bullhorn loud and proud. She handed it back to Ezra and almost kissed him, but as soon as she got close enough fot Ezra to realize what disaster was about to happen, he stopped her.

"Aria, we're at school."

"Oh, god, sorry, I don't even know what I'm thinking, sorry."

"No problem." He got a little closer to her and whispered, "I love you. Wanna come over? You can shower there while I get take-out."

"Perfect, and I love-"

"Ezra! Oh, Ezra!" Ella called, running up to Ezra and Aria. "Hey, I heard you're the new coach."

"Yeah, I am," Ezra smiled as casually as he could.

"Hey, you look tense. How about we grab a coffee?"

Aria's eyes got wide, and Ezra could tell she was telling him "No" with her eyes. "Well-I-"

"Oh, it's too late for that, how about a smoothie? I'll pay."

"You don't have to pay, but sure."

"Awesome, wanna go now? Byron dropped me off so you'll have to drive me, though." Aria got tense. Ezra was her ride home. Noel had driven Mike and her to practice. How was she supposed to get home?

"Actually, would you mind if I shower first? I don't wanna make everyone in the smoothie shop pass out."

"That's fine. Can you drop me off then? Oh, Aria, are you coming home? Oh, goodness, Noel already left so you don't have a ride do you?"

"Yeah, but-" Aria didn't like where this was going.

"Oh, Mr. Fitz, you wouldn't mind driving her too, would you?"

Ezra tried as hard as he could not to tell her that, yes, he did mind. Because driving with his girlfriend hand her clueless mother was not on the top of his to-do list. Hell, it wasn't on his to-do list. But, being the nice guy he was he answered with, "Sure, no problem."

The wheels in Ella's head started spinning and she got excited. "You know what? Aria loves smoothies! You should shower in our guest bathroom while Aria showers in her bathroom and we can all go to get smoothies together as a bunch of adults. We can run by your apartment and get some clothes if you like."

"Actually, I have some clothes in my car."

"Perfect! Let's go!"

Ezra looked at Aria and once Ella had gotten far enough ahead of them he whispered, "Holy crap."

**There ya go! As you now see, I am a drama freak. And this is so much fun! Awkward scenes? YEAH! EZRA"S SHOWERING AT HER HOUSE. Should I add an awkward shower scene…?**

**So now you know that this story isn't just Aria/Ezra, you get to see the team's growth too! And Mike has a love interest? Yes? No? You'll see :O**

**Oh, and sorry for the Mryland jokes. For some reason I think Aria would tease Ezra about something in his past, such as being from Maryland. Nothing against the state!**

**And look at me, trying something new! I used the phrase 'make out session', which I hate, but it fit, so I have to get over it. :O**

**Review please :) And thank you so much for all of the reviews! I love you all!**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	3. Awkward Doesn't Even Describe It

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 3- Awkward Doesn't Even Describe It**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

"_Oh, Mr. Fitz, you wouldn't mind driving her _[Aria]_ too, would you?" _

_Ezra tried as hard as he could not to tell her that, yes, he did mind. Because driving with his girlfriend and her clueless mother was not on the top of his to-do list. Hell, it wasn't on his to-do list. But, being the nice guy he was he answered with, "Sure, no problem."_

_The wheels in Ella's head started spinning and she got excited. "You know what? Aria loves smoothies! You should shower in our guest bathroom while Aria showers in her bathroom and we can all go to get smoothies together as a bunch of adults. We can run by your apartment and get some clothes if you like."_

"_Actually, I have some clothes in my car."_

"_Perfect! Let's go!"_

_Ezra looked at Aria and once Ella had gotten far enough ahead of them he whispered, "Holy crap."_

The ride to Aria's house was more than awkward.

They had all sat in their respective seats: Ezra in driver's seat, Ella in passengers, and Aria in back.

Right as Ezra was about to stick the key in the ignition Ella piped up, saying, "Oh, Ezra, maybe I should drive and you could sit in the back with Aria? Aria hates sitting in the back, especially by herself. I don't want her to be uncomfortable."

If the situation wasn't so bad, Ezra might have laughed. She didn't want Aria to feel _uncomfortable_… give him a break. Aria refused to meet Ezra's eye as he climbed in the backseat of _his_ car. He knew where Aria got control issues from. When Ella wanted something, she got it.

Ella started driving and Aria refused to make eye contact with him.

"So, Ezra, where'd you graduate?" Aria's head shot up because the awkward silence had been broken. She glued her eyes to Ezra.

"Hollis, actually." Ezra rubbed the back of his neck uncomfortably, a nervous habit of his that Aria just hated. She hit his hand, telling him to knock it off, and fortunately Ella didn't see her.

"You're working there now, aren't you?" Ezra nodded and Ella continued. "Aria's just devastated. She was crying in her room the whole week after the Hollis mixer at our house." Ella smirked to show she was only kidding, but Aria was already outraged.

Aria turned bright red and squealed, "Mom! That's not why!"

"And why was it?" Ella teased.

"I witnessed a murder, mother. It was a traumatizing event."

"Oh, please honey, Spencer got over it quicker than you."

Aria crossed her arms over her chest and huffed, "Whatever."

"Oh, we're home, Aria." They all walked in and Ella threw her purse on the table and her jacket on the coat rack. "Make yourself at home Ezra."

Aria's arm got caught in her coat sleeve, causing her to groan in frustration. Ezra saw her struggle and helped her, earning him a thankful smile.

"Mike? Byron?" Ella called down the hall.

"Mike's with Noel and Dad had a teacher meeting, remember?"

Ella nodded and said, "Right. Gosh, I'm getting old." Ella walked to her office, setting papers to grade and other things of the sort down on the desk.

Aria laughed halfheartedly at her mother, then turned to Ezra who was now standing awkwardly at the foot of the stairs. "Mr. Fitz-" Aria started, but her mother laughed, cutting her off.

"He's a family friend, call him Ezra, sweetie," Ella called from her office.

Aria bit her tongue, trying not to say anything that would reveal any secrets. "Sorry, Ezra, there's no soap in the guest bathroom, care to get some with me upstairs?"

Ezra could tell by the smirk daring to play on her lips that she wanted to do more mouth exploration than soap searching. "Sure." Aria started the way upstairs, Ezra following close behind. Once they got upstairs she practically attacked him, kissing him with force as she tangled her hands in his hair. Ezra was quick to reply, pushing her against the wall, his hands resting on the wall, fully cornering her.

Somehow they'd ended up in the bathroom. Now Aria was seated on the counter, making her stretch to his lips significantly shorter.

"Aria! Are you in the shower yet?" They jumped apart at the sound of Ella's voice. Aria ran over to the shower and turned it on.

"Yeah, mom, I am!"

"Where's Ezra?"

Aria froze, but tried to tell her lie as nonchalantly as possible. "In the one downstairs!"

"Okay."

Aria walked over to Ezra and kissed him again "You should probably go before my mom-"

There was a knock on the door followed by Ella saying, "Aria, I need to get some towels for Ezra, let me in!" But Ella noticed that the door was unlocked.

Once Aria realized that her mom was about to walk in she grabbed Ezra's hand and basically threw him in the shower. She ran in after him. Aria thanked God that her parents had refused to get her a glass shower like she'd asked, and made her keep a shower with a curtain. That way Ella couldn't see two figures in the shower.

What Aria hadn't thought of, was the fact that the shower was on.

When the cold water poured over Ezra he gasped, but Aria covered his mouth before a sound came out of it. She shot him a look that read, "Shut up," as she removed her hand from his mouth. He just shrugged, but still wasn't happy about the ice cold water showering over him.

Ella sighed from the other side of the curtain. "Don't you just love Ezra? He's so pleasant."

Ezra mouthed the word "pleasant" to Aria questioningly and she shrugged. "Um, yeah, mom he's an awesome teacher."

"Whatever Aria, you're basically in love with the man." Ezra almost yelped, but Aria covered his mouth again. Ella continued, "I'm serious Aria. I can't blame you though. You two have so much in common. If he was in your class instead of teaching it you two would be married by now."

"_Mom!"_

"I'm just telling you the truth. He's pretty cute too. Ya know, half of the girls in his class undress him with their eyes." Now it was Ezra's turn to cover Aria's mouth before she said something she'd regret.

"Well, hurry Aria, we don't wanna keep Ezra all afternoon!"

Aria heard the door shut and sighed, "That was close."

"Too close."

The water had made Ezra's white t-shirt cling to his skin to the point where Aria caught a glimpse of the last thing she expected to see on the peak of his shoulder.

"You have a tattoo?"

He looked at his shoulder then muttered, "Um, yeah."

"Is-Is that Chinese?" She traced the tattoo with her hand.

Ezra rolled his eyes chuckling softly and took off his shirt to give Aria a better look. She almost gasped and he asked, "Better?"

She smiled and traced over the section of his bare skin that held the tattoo. "Much. What on earth does it say?"

"It's my name in Chinese."

Aria laughed and asked, "When did you get this?"

"My freshman year at the dorm. Hardy made me get it, he got the same thing, but with his name."

"You had way too much fun your freshman year at the dorm."

"And you will too." Aria hated when they went through a conversation like this. The 'this is so wrong but it feels right' or 'you're a minor' conversations got on her nerves sometimes, and always caused a fight.

"Um, I bet I will. But we should, ya know, exit the shower before my mom gets worried that I drowned or something."

Ezra raised his brow. "Drowned in the shower?"

"Oh, hush Mr. Pleasant." Aria stepped out of the shower and smirked. "Oh, and put your shirt back on."

Ezra laughed and obeyed, accepting the towel Aria handed him. Aria walked to her bedroom, completely soaking the floor in the process as Ezra changed in the bathroom.

Once Ezra finished straightening his collar he made his way to Aria's room, careful to knock so he didn't invade her privacy.

"Dammit!" Aria yelled, but she realized that someone knocked on her door and said, "Oh, come in!" When Ezra walked in he saw Aria struggling with her dress.

"What exactly are you doing?" he asked.

"Oh, Ezra, thank god, help me with this zipper will you? It's stuck."

He just smiled and walked over to her and smirked. He pulled the zipper up without the slightest difficulty.

"How did you-Ugh whatever, I don't even care at this point."

He laughed and Aria smiled, grabbing his hand. "Smoothie time."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

The door made a little ding as Ella pushed it open.

"Do you want me to get the orders and you find a seat?" Ella offered.

Ezra and Aria nodded and gave her their orders for smoothies.

"Window seat?" Ezra asked Aria, but she was already sitting on the highchairs next to the window. "I guess so," he said to himself. Aria smiled as he walked over to her.

Ella brought the smoothies over a few minutes later and they made average small talk.

But, two tables over a pretty blonde woman was sneaking peeks at Ezra and smiling. Ella noticed and whispered, "Ezra, I think she likes you. We should invite her over. She's all alone, ya know?" Aria nearly did a spit take and Ezra nearly choked on his smoothie.

"Um, Ella, I don't think that's such a good idea-"

But it was too late. The next time the woman's eyes connected with the table the three were sitting at Ella motioned for her to come over. She did and smiled.

"Ezra Fitz? Is that you trying to hide behind a Styrofoam cup?" The woman laughed.

Aria couldn't help but ask, "You know her?"

Ezra sighed and said, "Hey Amanda. Ella, Aria, this is Amanda, my ex-fiancée's best friend."

**Hahahaha Gotcha! But seriously, how many of you actually saw that coming?**

**Okay, I admit it. I made Ella COMPLETELY clueless in this story XD Question: Do you want Ella to find out about Ezra and Aria's relationship in this?**

**Oh, and this sentence right here: **_The_ _water had made Ezra's white t-shirt cling to his skin to the point where Aria caught a glimpse of the last thing she expected to see on the peak of his shoulder. _**Was the most awkwardly worded sentence ever, and I am sorry.**

**Coming up next is the REAL story between Ezra and Jackie. Ezra gave the sugarcoated version, Amanda will tell the true story :O**

**Review please, all of the lovely reviews make my day :D**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	4. The Whole Truth Of Ezra Fitz

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 4-The Whole Truth of Ezra Fitz**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

_Two tables over a pretty blonde woman was sneaking peeks at Ezra and smiling. Ella noticed and whispered, "Ezra, I think she likes you. We should invite her over. She's all alone, ya know?" Aria nearly did a spit take and Ezra nearly choked on his smoothie._

"_Um, Ella, I don't think that's such a good idea-"_

_But it was too late. The next time the woman's eyes connected with the table the three were sitting at Ella motioned for her to come over. She did and smiled._

"_Ezra Fitz? Is that you trying to hide behind a Styrofoam cup?" The woman laughed._

_Aria couldn't help but ask, "You know her?"_

_Ezra sighed and said, "Hey Amanda. Ella, Aria, this is Amanda, my ex-fiancée's best friend."_

Ella and Aria both gasped simultaneously. Ella said, "Ex-fiancée?" while Aria gasped, "Best friend?"

"Yeah, in the flesh!" Amanda smiled. "Hey, Ezzy, Jackie feels really bad about how she left you at the altar."

This time Ella asked, "Jackie?" while Aria gaped at Amanda asking, "Ezzy?"

"Yeah, Jackie Molina," Amanda answered, shifting in her seat a little.

Ella looked at Ezra. "Jackie Molina, as is Ms. Molina who teaches American Liturgy at Hollis?"

Suddenly Ezra wished he'd had some heavy alcohol in his hand rather than a smoothie. "Yup, that's her."

"Well, then, what's the story?" Aria finally piped up, wondering why Ezra had left out the tiny detail that he was _left at the altar_.

"Oh, he hasn't told you two the story? Oh, well Ezra and Jackie met in college, right? And they started dating, kay? Now Jackie was drunk half of the time so she slept with pretty much everyone at Hollis. And every time Ezra caught her in action they'd break up."

As Aria's eyes grew wide Ezra covered his face with his hands and muttered, "Amanda, please stop…"

"Shh! Any who, they got back together the billionth time and Ezra decided to bring her to Italy. And he proposed! So she got to meet the whole family, and I was-and still am-her best friend so I got to meet the whole family. Have you seen Ezra's brother? Hot! But anyways, the whole wedding was set up in Maryland, where Ezzy here is from-"

"Wait, you're from Maryland?" Ella asked.

Ezra tried not to roll his eyes as he answered, "Yeah."

"That's hilarious!" Ella smiled. Aria tried not to laugh by covering her mouth, and Amanda continued.

"It was at one of those beautiful botanic gardens, right? So the wedding march comes on and Ezra's just so excited. But he sees me running down the aisle telling him Jackie bailed. We looked everywhere for her and found her, Ezra's brother and 4 bottles of wine in Ezra's room at his house. They were sleeping together! And-"

"Amanda, that's enough."

"Wow," Ella sighed. "That must have been depressing."

Amanda giggled, "Depressing? You have no idea. This guy right here cancelled all of his classes for the next semester and sat on the couch eating all of this junk food emotionless. And he didn't gain a pound even though he drenched just about everything he ate in that spray cheese from a can."

"_Amanda_!"

"Oops, well, I've already said too much. Now my lips are sealed." She proceeded by locking her lips and closed the key out.

"Oh, Amanda, you've already said it all…"

Aria laughed and mumbled giddily, "Oh, yes she did."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"No, the drill isn't fair Mr. Fitz!" Noel objected.

"Of course it is, all you have to do is beat me. Just play defense!" Ezra insisted.

"No, I wanna do offense."

Ezra smirked and threw Noel the lacrosse stick. "Okay. You'll need a helmet."

"You didn't wear a helmet."

"I didn't need one. I knew you weren't going to stop me. You, on the other hand, are about to get beat up by your English teacher. Ready?"

Thirty minutes later Ezra had successfully beaten all of the guys.

"H-How do you do that?" Mike asked from his seat on the ground. He was trying to catch his breath and every now and then he'd pour some of his water over himself.

"Simple, young one." Ezra knocked on Mike's helmet. "Practice. You should try it."

Ezra started to walk away but Mike's voice stopped him. "Hey, Mr. Fitz?"

Ezra turned around, facing Mike. "Yeah Mike?"

"Can you teach me h-how you do it? Lacrosse? I wanna get better, and you're basically the best. Please."

Ezra smiled, "Sure."

"Just-uh-don't tell Aria. She's like, in love with you and will tag along and I want to do this alone. One-on-one."

Ezra looked at Aria, and he suddenly wanted to resist Mike's offer. But it was his team and he had to help them. Ezra gave in with a sigh, not taking his eyes off of Aria. "Yeah, it'll be our little secret."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Runaway Girl, Catch Me If You Can, Runaway Bride…?" Ezra turned to Aria, who was on the couch, still holding the stack of movies she'd brought for them to watch. "I sense a very unwanted theme in the titles. Care to talk about it?"

Aria bit her lip before responding, "Only if you want to tell me the truth."

"_Aria!"_

"What?"

Ezra set the movies down. Running his hands through his hair to try and calm himself down he said, "Aria, you say that I lied when I didn't."

"You left out important details! If Amanda wouldn't have told me and my mom yesterday I wouldn't have known the truth!"

"Aria, I sugarcoated it for you so I could…" Ezra was lost for words. He actually wasn't sure why he'd sugarcoated it for Aria.

"So you could what?" Aria demanded. She hated how their fights got her all riled up. But she couldn't help it, sometimes Ezra just pissed her off.

"So I could protect you!"

Aria looked at him sincerely before asking softly, "So you could protect me? Don't you mean so you could protect yourself?"

"Yes. I-I mean no! Uh, maybe?" Ezra sighed and sat on the couch. "I-I don't know."

Aria could see the pain in his eyes. She could tell he was reliving the day it happened. Rubbing his back trying to tell him it was okay she whispered, "Hey, it's okay. You don't have to know. Your head's probably racing a hundred miles a minute."

"It was so hard, Aria. I really, really thought I was in love with her, but she was just so…. out of control. People say I was what kept her sane, but while I was keeping her sane I was going insane. She was just too much."

"Yeah…" Aria decided to lighten the mood. She sat Indian-style and leaned closer to him, smiling. "So what was your favorite part?"

Ezra raised his brow, sitting up. "Favorite part of what?"

"The wedding, everyone has a favorite part of a wedding. What part did you want to go perfectly?"

Ezra thought about it for a second then responded, "The dance. You know the first dance for the bride and groom? I was terrified."

"Why?"

"I was afraid I'd screw it up. I'd step on her foot or… sneeze or something to kill the moment."

"I bet you would've done fine," Aria whispered. They sat in a comfortable enough silence when Aria got an idea. She walked over to her purse and picked up her iPod. She then turned the volume all the way up after picking out a random slow song.

"What are you doing, Aria?"

She extended her hand and asked, "Dance with me?"

"Aria I-"

"_Please_."

She could tell he'd given in with his eyes. Ezra took her hand and Aria helped him get up off of the couch. They started slow dancing to the song in circles because of the limited space holding each other close. When Aria rested her head in the crook of his neck she whispered, "Don't sneeze."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria walked into school with the biggest smile plastered on her face.

Spencer noticed her best friend's giddiness first. "What are you so happy about?"

"Is it about… him?" Emily asked.

Hanna got excited and her eyes grew wide. "You slept with him!" Spencer, Emily, and Aria gave Hanna an odd look that told Hanna she was off by one hundred eighty degrees. "Or not?"

"Not," Aria answered. "I just realized for the first time last night that I have nothing to be jealous of. Ezra doesn't love Jackie."

"What did you do?" Emily asked.

"You know how I said just cuz we're inside the building we can't light candles and slow dance?"

"Yeah," they all said simultaneously.

"Well, we danced in his apartment then-" Aria was interrupted by the intercom.

"_~Aria Montgomery and Ezra Fitz, Mr. Kinney wants you in his office… __**now**__.~"_

**Hahaha Yup, every chapter is ending in a cliffy people! I especially love this one.**

**Sorry about the shortness of the chapter :O**

**Oh, just so you know I have NO idea when I'm taking this story. All I know is that it is going to end when the lacrosse team advances/wins something/blah, blah, blah. So I am TOTALLY open to any suggestions. And notes from A, because as you can see, I SUCK at those :( **

**Sorry I keep using scenes from the show but changing them a little, I do that sometimes. I think it helps with the visualizations and such. Plus, I think most of the scenes were cute the first time and could always be reused. Especially Ezra's, "Yes! N-no. Maybe," from episode 5 :O And yes, I reused it :D**

**And I included the rest of the Liars in this chap! I realized they were being neglected…**

**Review please! I was so excited with all of the reviews I updated today :D**

**Love Always, **

**-randomness**


	5. Mike's Gotta Girlfriend

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 5-Mike's Gotta Girlfriend**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_"You know how I said just cuz we're inside the building doesn't mean we can light candles and slow dance?"_

_"Yeah," they [Hanna, Emily, and Spencer] all said simultaneously._

_"Well, we danced in his apartment then-" Aria was interrupted by the intercom._

"_~Aria Montgomery and Ezra Fitz, Mr. Kinney wants you in his office… __**now**__.~"_

Aria froze, and so did her friends. All of the prior excitement was gone. She could see the door to the office from where she was standing. She took a deep breath and walked over to it, turning the handle so she could enter. She was going to handle this like an adult.

The office manager looked at her and said, "You can go in Aria." Aria stepped closer to the door, trying not to pass out from the excessive amount of fear. The office manager added, "He doesn't look mad."

"Thank god," Aria whispered to herself. She sat down in a chair and tried to avoid making eye-contact with Mr. Kinney, who was sitting a mere 5 feet away from her, sitting at his desk. Only a few seconds later Ezra walked in, sitting next to her.

Ezra opened his mouth to speak, but he quickly stopped when Mr. Kinney laughed. "You two are so cute!"

That caught Aria off guard. "_Excuse_ me?"

"You came in here as if I was going to chop your heads off. I just wanted a status report." Aria and Ezra both let out a sigh of relief, and the principal kept talking. "And Ezra, how do you like your new office, or shall I say Ian's old one? Is the sports side of the building treating you nicely?"

"Um-I-Yes, and I finished that paperwork for you, also."

Mr. Kinney furrowed his brow. "What paperwork?"

Ezra shifted in his seat. "The paperwork stating that me being the lacrosse coach is pure volunteer work, sir. So I can work at Hollis next year."

Ezra was suppose to finish off the school year for Mrs. Gyllenhan, who was expecting a baby, but she'd had a miscarriage, so Ezra only subbed for two weeks while she was in the hospital. Mrs. Gyllenhan gets to finish off the school year herself, but Ezra was being paid by Hollis as a regular substitute, and he would be replacing Mr. Jacobson, who was retiring this summer.

"Oh, very well. So is the team doing well?"

"Very," Aria intervened, feeling very secluded from the conversation. "They're doing great. You should come to a practice."

"Maybe I will." The three of them sat in an awkward silence for a while, not knowing what to say next. Mr. Kinney cleared his throat. "You two are dismissed."

Ezra and Aria got up to leave. While they were going out the door the principal added, "I'm glad I paired you up for this. You work together very well."

"Thank you," Aria and Ezra said at the time, making their way out a little quicker.

Once the door slammed shut Mr. Kinney smiled, "Cute couple."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"You good Mike?" Ezra asked, running alongside Mike, who was hurdling. They were in one of their one-on-one practices. "Mike? Mike? MIKE?"

"Wha?" Mike snapped out of his trance, tripping on a hurdle in the process.

"Whoa, kid, you okay?" Ezra knelt down beside him and gave him a water bottle. Mike accepted it and sighed, blushing. "Hey, what are you…?" Ezra followed Mike's gaze and saw a girl giggling in the bleachers. "Oh."

"Yeah, oh."

Ezra sat down fully next to Mike. "Who is she?"

Mike smiled. "Kristina. Kristina Brandson."

"She's pretty," Ezra admitted.

"I know. Way out of my league, right?" Mike poured the remainder of the water bottle over himself.

"No, she likes you. Have you talked to her?"

"No! Are you crazy?"

"I sure do hope not. Just talk to her. Get to know her and stuff. I promise she'll like you."

Mike laughed, standing up. "Dude, girls are too unpredictable to promise a thing like that."

Ezra chuckled, "Fair enough."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"C'mon guys! Faster!"

Noel stopped doing his lunges when he got to Ezra. "Mr. Fitz! This isn't fair!"

"Of course it is. I told you to stop staring at the girls in the bleachers, now you can't."

"But doing the drill with them on our shoulders?"

"You can't see Ms. Llamar now, can you? And she seems to be having fun. Isn't that right Emma?"

Emma laughed from Noel's shoulders. "Lots, Mr. Fitz."

Noel was flabbergasted. "_Emma_!"

"Start lunging, Noel," Ezra said. Noel didn't even try to object, doing as his coach asked.

An hour later practice was over. And, yes, they'd all run the 10 laps around the school. Mike had almost gotten out of it, but Ezra was just a little too quick.

Mike had been staring at Kristina ever since she'd gotten off his shoulders. He couldn't help it. Her blonde hair and green-blue eyes were beautiful. She was beautiful.

Ezra noticed Mike's war within himself, trying to decide whether to talk to her or not. Ezra chuckled and walked up to Mike, resting a hand on his shoulder. "Do it, dude, just talk to her."

"Okay. If I die you are so not invited to my funeral." Ezra chucked as Mike walked off. Once Mike reached Kristina, he'd deeply considered turning around, but Kristina had seen him.

"Hey, Mike!" she greeted cheerfully.

"Um-I-I-Um, hi." He blushed but Kristina just giggled.

"You looked really cute out there. You're pretty good."

"Th-Thank you." They became trapped in an uncomfortable silence for a while. "I-um-I guess I should go. I should get home. Bye."

Kristina tried not to look hurt as she mumbled, "Um, yeah, bye."

Mike started walking off, but he turned around and asked, "Hey, you're good at Algebra and Trig and all of that, right? Aren't you in AP?"

"Um, yeah, why?"

"I suck at Algebra and Trig and all things math. Would you tutor me?"

Kristina smiled. "Sure."

Mike smirked as he walked away. He was great at Algebra.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria climbed out of Ezra's shower, wrapping a towel around herself. She made her way around the empty apartment-Ezra was getting food for dinner-and made her way to The dresser where Ezra kept her clothes and his old t-shits and sweatpants that fit her.

She slipped on a pair of grey sweatpants and a Hollis t-shirt. She started rummaging through his sock drawer, because her feet were as cold as the North Pole, and found a small wooden box under all of the socks. It was too big to be a ring box or any type of jewelry at all, but it wasn't big enough to be a shoebox, or half of a shoebox for that matter. As she pulled a sock on her right foot she pulled the

Aria opened the box and found the last thing she expected.

Ten minutes later Ezra walked into the apartment with the Chinese take-out for dinner. Aria stood in the room, opposite of him. She was wearing his clothes and only one sock. He could tell she was trying not to cry, and she was focused on his eyes. He moved his eyes to her hands, which were holding the last thing he wanted to see.

After a few more moments of silence she asked, "Ezra, what is this? And why do I think that this is going to be bad?"

"You think it's going to be bad because it is. Like, really bad." Ezra set down the takeout and ran his fingers through his hair. "That-that's the ring I gave Jackie when I proposed."

**Hahahaha What was the last thing you expected? What I just wrote. XD**

**THANK YOU for all of the reviews! I wish I could respond to each and every one of them but I honestly don't have the time! But I want you to know that I love you all! :D**

**More on Mike's love interest in the next chapter. And Ezra's going to continue being the brother Mike never had, cuz he **_**might just**_** hook Mike and Kristina up.**

**So…. anyone know anything about lacrosse? Cuz I could REALLY use some help. Like terms and common drills and such. Cuz I have NO CLUE what I'm doin with THAT end of the story.**

**PLEASE check out my new Ezra/Aria oneshot Adjustment and Sacrifices and tell me what you think :D**

**Review please :D**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	6. Off The Roof We Go

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 6-Off The Roof We Go**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Ten minutes later Ezra walked into the apartment with the Chinese take-out for dinner. Aria stood in the room, opposite of him. She was wearing his clothes and only one sock. He could tell she was trying not to cry, and she was focused on his eyes. He moved his eyes to her hands, which were holding the last thing he wanted to see._

_After a few more moments of silence she asked, "Ezra, what is this? And why do I think that this is going to be bad?"_

"_You think it's going to be bad because it is. Like, really bad." Ezra set down the takeout and ran his fingers through his hair. "That-that's the ring I gave Jackie when I proposed."_

"Please explain before I get really mad."

Ezra sat on the couch, slipping his jacket off in the process. He put his face in his hands and tried not to cry. Taking his face out of his hands he said, "Aria I-when I said it was hard it really was." His voice cracked and a tear ran down his cheek. "I-I don't like to talk about it with you."

Every ounce of sympathy drained from Aria's body. "And why the hell not?"

"Because, Aria, you don't know Jackie. Jackie has this thing where… where she can just tear people apart. And if I spill my feelings for her right here, right now you will be pissed off and… I just can't have someone else I love leave me."

"E-Ezra. You can tell me anything. You think I'll explode like some pathetic 16 year old. You know that I can handle it. This isn't my problem, it's yours. You can't tell me because you're scared of something you won't tell me." Aria took a seat next to Ezra. "Now tell me."

"I loved Jackie, a lot. She was the first girl that understood me. We read the same books, we watched the same movies, everything. And when she left me, for my own brother, I-" Ezra took a deep breath and looked Aria in the eye. "Do you know what she said to me when we found her sleeping with my brother? She gave me the ring and told me, 'It's your fault for falling in love with me. Thanks for the memories.' That's it."

"E-Ezra I'm-"

Ezra didn't wait for her to finish, he just kept going. "There was a giant wall put in front of me, Aria. I couldn't get passed it. Do you know why I went to the pub that day I met you? I found out Jackie was back in town and I needed to forget about her or, at least, try to."

"I'm so sorry-"

"Don't be. That wall was around me. And I was okay with being behind it. Then I saw you walk into the pub and, well, you beat the shit out of that wall until it fell down and we were making out in the bathroom."

Aria laughed halfheartedly, but then noticed she was still holding the ring. "Here, this is yours."

Ezra took it and examined it. He took aria's hand and rested the ring in her palm. "Take it. Do whatever you want with it, I don't need it anymore."

"I can do anything with it?" Ezra nodded. "Are you sure?" He nodded once again, and Aria smiled. "Then put your coat on."

"Why?"

Aria threw Ezra's jacket at him and slipped her own coat and boots on. "Because I am going to make you feel better… Ezzy." Aria could tell that Ezra didn't like that. She started running, making her way out of the apartment, Ezra running right after her. Aria led him to the roof of the apartment, where she wanted to go in the first place. She decided to take the stairs so Ezra couldn't catch her in the elevator. But once she opened the door that lead to the roof, Ezra caught up with her, wrapping his arm around her waist and smiling.

"Take it… back," he said, out of breath.

"Never," Aria breathed out. He held her tighter-not in an aggressive way, more of a playful one-making Aria giggle. "I'm not taking it back."

"Please?"

"Nope."

Ezra laughed and begged again, "Please?"

"You know I love you?"

"Yes, now take it back."

"Fine, I take it back, now came here." She grabbed his hand and pulled him to the edge.

"Dude, I kept the ring, you don't need to throw me off a building," Ezra joked. Aria handed Ezra the ring. "What am I supposed to do with this?"

"Throw it off of the edge, silly."

"You want me to what?"

"Throw it off of the edge, Ezra."

Ezra chucked at his girlfriend, muttering, "I can't believe I'm doing this…" He threw the ring like a professional baseball player into the Rosewood sky.

Aria grabbed his hand and smiled up at him. "Do you feel better? I do."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Do it."

"No."

"Do it."

"No!"

"Mike!"

"NO!"

Ezra sighed. Mike and his one-on-one lacrosse practices had turned into "Have you made a move yet?" interrogations from Ezra. "And why not?"

"Because…" Mike couldn't think of a reason why that wouldn't stab his masculinity.

"You're chicken?"

"Yup, now c'mon. I wanna practice."

"Your first date is tonight, right?" Ezra asked, ignoring Mike's strive to practice entirely.

"Yeah, why?"

"I have an idea." Ezra ran to his bag on the bleachers and pulled out a piece of string from his bag, giving it to Mike proudly.

"What, do you want me to strangle her?"

"No." Then, Ezra told him his great plan.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Wow, you were right. This is the best ice cream in town," Kristina said as she wiped her hands and mouth with a napkin. Mike had taken Kristina to a local ice cream place that he always went to when he was younger.

Mike smirked, leaning back in his chair. "I know my junk food, what can I say?"

She stood up and smiled. "I guess I should be getting home…"

Mike jumped out of his chair, "Wait! I-I mean, um, there's one more stop on our date."

"Oh, really?"

Mike relaxed a little bit when he answered, "Really, now c'mon." He offered his hand out for her to hold, and she accepted, blushing. He took her a few stores over, to a store for little girls. Kristina raised her brow at him, but he kept going. He walked up to the jewelry counter and took the string out, giving it to her.

"What is this?"

"Every time we go on a date, I'm going to buy you a single bead, and you can add it to the bracelet."

"Like a charm bracelet?"

"Exactly. Now, I think this bead should be your first." Mike showed her a bead that was shaped like an ice cream cone.

"That's perfect. But it's on a necklace already."

"Eh, we'll just cut it off." Mike turned to the man behind the counter. "I'd like that bracelet please."

The man got it for him and he paid for it. Once they left the store Mike broke the necklace's string and slipped off the ice cream bead, handing it to Kristina. She pulled the strand of string from her pocket and slipped the bead on it. Mike went to throw the necklace away. But Kristina stopped him.

"Mike, can I have that?"

"Yeah, sure." He handed her the necklace and she shoved it in her pocket. "Need help tying the bracelet on?"

Kristina smiled. "Yeah, thanks."

"So we should head back to your place," Mike said uncomfortably, rubbing the back of his neck.

"Yeah, we should." They walked back to the school, which was only a block away, because they'd started their date right after Mike's one-on-one practice with Ezra.

When they got to the parking lot Mike pulled his keys out of his pocket, and tried to unlock his car. "That's weird… aw, darn it!"

"What?"

"I grabbed Ez-I mean Mr. Fitz's keys on accident! And I don't think he'd like it if I drove his car to drop off my girlf-um, never mind."

"Oh, it's fine, we'll just walk to my house." Kristina grabbed his hand. "His apartment complex is on the way to my house anyway."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"What took you so long?" Aria asked from the couch as her boyfriend walked into the apartment.

He was about to tell her about how he'd grabbed the wrong keys, but then realized he couldn't. He had a secret to keep.

"Nothing, I just walked home."

"Why?"

"No reason, it's just a beautiful day."

Aria looked at Ezra like he was insane. "It's 58 degrees outside and it's about to rain. Where were you walking?"

Ezra laughed, "Whatever." He bent down to kiss her. "So what have you been doing?"

"I looked for food, didn't find any, wallowed in self pity, got over it, and decided to watch a movie." Ezra chucked and rolled his eyes. "One day I'm going to teach you the wonders of _grocery shopping_." Aria got up and walked over to him, smiling. "You know, when we can finally go public?"

"I know, it'll be so great when we-"

Aria cut him off when she spotted something. "What's this?" Aria moved Ezra's jacket out of the way and found Mike's keys. "Are these… these are Mike's keys."

"Um-yeah-about that-"

On the other side of the door Ezra heard the last thing he needed to hear at that moment. "Mr. Fitz! It's Mike! Let me in, you have my keys!"

**_Wooo_, Should Mike find out? Or should Aria get a REALLY great hiding spot, or should Aria, ya know, LIE? Hahaha**

**It started off so DEPRESSING, didn't it? Poor **_**Ezzy **_**XD**

**Thank you so much for all of the reviews! I love you all! And, yes, I will be continuing Adjustments and Sacrifices, because I'm a pushover. :/**

**And isn't Mike just too ADORABLE? And I thought the string bracelet thing was pretty clever, aye?**

**Review please!**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	7. You're B26

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 7-You're B-26**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

"_What's this?" Aria moved Ezra's jacket out of the way and found Mike's keys. "Are these… these are Mike's keys."_

"_Um-yeah-about that-" At that moment Ezra heard the last thing he needed to right then._

"_Mr. Fitz! It's Mike! Let me in, you have my keys!"_

"Um, one second Mike!" Ezra turned to face Aria, freaking out in the process. "Aria, you need to-" He realized he was talking to an empty room. Aria was too fast for him, she'd already hidden. "…hide. Never mind then, I'm just talking to myself now."

"Ezra! Open up! I need my keys!"

Ezra ran to the door and opened it for Mike.

"Hey! You, um, have my keys. But you probably already know that…" Mike rubbed the back of his neck and Ezra could just see Aria slapping Mike's hand away for the "unacceptable" action.

"Uh, yeah, come in. They're right in here." Mike walked in and Ezra shut the door.

"Wow. You're just like Aria. She'd die if she saw this place." He walked over to the book shelf and read some of the titles. "These are like, all of Aria's favorites." Ezra knew that, that was why they were on the first shelf.

"Yeah, they're classics."

Mike scoffed, "You sound like Aria."

Ezra decided the subject needed to change just about now. "So-um-where's Kristina? You just ended your date, right?"

"Oh, she ran into a friend from school outside the building and is talking to her while I get my keys."

"Oh." Ezra started rocking on his heels.

Mike moved to the table, where he saw a book wide open. "B-26, by… Ezra Fitz! You wrote a poem? _It's a number. It's a song. It's a girl._ This was for a girl?"

"Um, yeah. A great girl."

"Is she cute?"

"Beautiful."

"Well, I know Aria's going to love this. I have to call her and tell her." Mike whipped out his phone, and before Ezra could stop it, it happened.

Aria's phone rang. It rang in her pocket, revealing her hiding spot. Mike turned to the bed, seeing Aria behind it. Aria glued her eyes to mike's and answered the phone.

"Hello?" she whispered in to the phone.

Mike's hand started shaking and his mouth was gaping with disbelief. "A-Aria. What are you doing here?"

Aria knew he knew, so she just pleaded, "Don't tell."

"Oh my god. Y-Y-You're B-26."

Aria stopped talking through the phone and begged, "Mike, please, don't tell."

"Aria, please, tell me you're kidding."

"I'm not."

Mike threw his phone across the room, making Aria and Ezra jump a little. "Aria!"

"Mike, don't!"

"Why are you turning into dad, Aria?"

Aria stepped closer to him. She started getting angry. "What is that suppose to mean?"

"You're dating your teacher! I mean, Ezra's great but he's your teacher! Or-or ex-teacher or whatever! And you know if mom and dad find out mom will blame it on dad and the whole family will be ruined again!"

Aria's tone softened. "Mike, it'll be okay."

"You always say that when it won't be okay. Aria, if I don't tell then I'll get in trouble when they find out and if I do tell I'll mess everything up! I don't know what to do about this."

"Don't tell, Mike."

"Why shouldn't I?"

Ezra made himself noticed when he intervened. "You like Kristina, right?"

That caught Mike off guard. "Uh,-yeah, I like her a lot."

"Who's Kristina?" Aria asked.

Ezra shushed her and continued, "You can go out on dates, and hold hands in public, and-"

"Leave at the same time without counting to fifty."

Ezra smiled. "Yeah, and leave at the same time without having to count to fifty, can't you?" Mike nodded, not getting the point. "Well, me and Aria can't do that. But I love her so I have to get over it. And we fight all the time and we get on each other's nerves and we tear each other apart, but that's okay because at the end of the day all that matters is I don't have a pink slip and a revoked teaching license and she's not the hot topic at school."

"I don't get it though. W-why is this happening to me?"

"Mike," Aria laughed, "That's all we were thinking when this all started. 'Why me? Why did I fall in love with them? Why can't I get them off of my mind? Why can't this be right?'"

"Aria, c'mon, this isn't as good as it is bad."

"Yes, we are a lot more wrong than we are right. But ya know, I don't care. H-H-he reads the same books as me, and understands my boundaries, and knows what to say in every situation a-and-and he chases me to the rooftop so we can throw rings off of the building!"

"And he loves you and you love him and that's all that matters?" Mike asked. Aria nodded. "This is such a cliché…"

They all laughed a little, and Aria said, "Mike, and all fairytales are pretty cliché, right?"

"Kinda, so?"

"All fairytales also have a happily ever after, too, you know."

Mike sighed. "Aria, I better not regret this, but your secret is safe with me."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"He WHAT?" Hanna shrieked from one end of the four way call the four girls had going.

"Mike found out. I also found out Mike has a girlfriend and that he's been getting one-on-one lacrosse lessons from Ezra."

"Did Ezra find out we know?" Emily asked.

"Nope."

"Where is lover-boy anyway?" Spencer asked. "You're at his place, right?

"Umm…"

"I'll take that as a yes!" Hanna laughed. "Where is he?"

"Is he in the bed?" Spencer asked.

"No."

"Are you _on_ the bed?" Hanna asked.

Aria jumped off of the bed and nearly knocked the lamp over. "No!"

"Oh, c'mon guys, get real!" Emily laughed. "Is he getting take-out for dinner?"

"U-I-um, no…"

"Pizza for dinner?" Emily guessed.

"Not exactly… it's not food related…"

"Then where is the boy?" Hanna asked.

"Oh my god, is he in the shower?" Spencer guessed.

"Um… maybe?"

"Why aren't you in there with him?" Hanna squealed.

"Hanna!" Emily, Spencer and Aria scolded in unison.

"Sorry… but seriously, why?"

"Call ending now."

"But-"

"Bye."

"Aria!"

Aria pressed END CALL and put her phone in her purse. She got a text a few seconds later and assumed it was from one of the girls. But she soon found it was not.

**UNKNOWN**

**Poor little Aria! Your brother knows your secret? Well, he was just in time! Cuz I'm about to tell everyone. Unless you do something for ME…**

Aria read what A wanted her to do and couldn't believe it. It was the most absurd thing she'd ever heard! She could never do that. But she knew she had to. She had to protect Ezra.

As soon as her mind was wrapped around the fact her breaths started getting shorter, and her heart started beating a hundred miles a minute. Her hands started shaking and she started seeing dots.

Ezra walked into the room and saw her, rushing over to her to stabilize her. Aria could barely hear him as he said, "Aria, I need you to calm down. You're having one of your panic attacks. Keep your eyes open, Aria, look at me. Aria, Aria, _Aria_!"

Then her whole world went black.

**Dun, dun, duuuuuun hahaha, sorry. I love doing these cliffys!**

**Sorry it took so long to update! I just got an iPhone as an early birthday present and I'm addicted to it! Hahaha**

**My birthday is may 19****th**** btw…. I do accept any and all presents :D XDDDD jk, all you need to give me is a review! :D**

**Soooo… anyway.**

**I got the panic attack thing from the books, btw. Aria has 'em every once in a while in the books, so I just thought of that.**

**Plus, I overheated at church on Wednesday and I had an experience like that. It was pretty scary. It got really hot all of a sudden, then I started seeing dots, then it went all black and I don't remember anything after that until I woke up with my feet propped up and a towel on my head. Apparently my subconscious made me stand up and walk around like some drunk until someone got me and lay me down. XD It was really embarrassing. But, now I get all worried when I break a sweat that I'll over heat again.**

**On the bright side I won an art contest! Hahaha**

**And I WILL update Adjustments and Sacrifices… eventually.**

**I just want to thank CrazyLove345 and StarWriter101 for being my biggest fans out there! I love all of my reviewers, but your reviews just make me feel extra super loved! Thank you!**

**Review please!**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	8. Oh, No She Didn't

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 8-Oh, No She Didn't**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**Sorry about my small amount of knowledge about panic attacks. But can we just go with it? Great :D**

_Dedicated to Starwriter101 who sent me a PM to sit my butt down and write. :D_

**General POV**

_**UNKNOWN**_

_**Poor little Aria! Your brother knows your secret? Well, he was just in time! Cuz I'm about to tell everyone. Unless you do something for ME…**_

_Aria read what A wanted her to do and couldn't believe it. It was the most absurd thing she'd ever heard! She could never do that. But she knew she had to. She had to protect Ezra._

_As soon as her mind was wrapped around the fact her breaths started getting shorter, and her heart started beating a hundred miles a minute. Her hands started shaking and she started seeing dots._

_Ezra walked into the room and saw her, rushing over to her to stabilize her. Aria could barely hear him as he said, "Aria, I need you to calm down. You're having one of your panic attacks. Keep your eyes open, Aria, look at me. Aria, Aria, Aria!"_

_Then her whole world went black._

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Oh my god Aria, are you okay?" Ella came running up to Aria and hugging her once Aria got out of Ezra's car. Ezra had brought her home after she'd recovered from her panic attack. He'd made up a lie, saying that Aria went to his apartment to discuss routines/drills/setup etc for lacrosse practice and games. The team's first game was this Saturday, and so far the only one who wasn't running ten laps at the end of practice was Mike.

"Yeah, I'm fine. I feel fine. I don't know why everyone cares so much!" Aria brushed her mom off of her and trudged into the house without another word. She heard her mom invite Ezra inside because it was 'the least she could do.' No, the least she could do was make him go away so Aria could stop thinking about how she had to fulfill "A"'s wish.

She had a deadline to do what "A" wanted her too or "A" would tell everyone. And Aria couldn't afford that. She called Spencer and told her the story, including the threat.

"_She wants you to do what? That's insane; you can't do that!"_

"Spencer, I have to. If I don't Ezra and my future would be so screwed."

"_It's screwed either way, hun. How are you going to get him to understand? Your deadline is midnight tonight or "A" tells the public!"_

"What if I told my parents at dinner? I mean, Ezra technically isn't my teacher anymore so his teaching license can't be taken away. Plus, we haven't done anything so…"

"_Aria?"_

"Yes?"

"_No. Your mom would kill your dad and it would turn into a whole "Like Father like Daughter" type scenario."_

"Is that so bad?"

"_Yes! They'll murder each other! The less they know the better, right? What they don't know won't hurt them!"_

Aria sighed. "Will you guys help me tell him? I have a feeling he knows you know anyway and I don't want to do this alone."

"_Sure, come to my house at eight and we'll go over what to say, then we can invite him over later. My parents are out of town with Melissa this weekend and my neighbor is supposed to watch me but, you know Mr. Riley…"_

"Yeah, I'll see you in…" Aria looked at the clock, "…twenty minutes then."

"_Okay."_

"Bye."

Aria hung up and sighed. She knew this wouldn't be good.

****

"I'm sorry," Ella apologized after Aria stomped off. "She usually doesn't act like this. Well, you know that. Would you like to come in? It's getting late anyway and it's the least I can do."

"Um, yeah, sure." Ezra locked the car and followed Ezra into the house. Byron, who was watching sports on television, waved at Ezra when he walked him.

When Mike saw him he smiled. Mike had three bowls of popcorn, a bag of candy, a twelve pack of soda and a few bags of chips in his arms. "Hey Ezra!" Mike greeted, but Ezra could barely understand him because of the bag of chips in his mouth.

"Hey Mike, what are you watching?"

"The NLL, you should join us," Byron called from the living room.

"This is the Wings/Rattlers game, right?" Ezra took a seat next to Mike, who'd just set down all of the food in his hands-and mouth.

"Yeah, damn commercials are killing me. You should only advertise Coca-Cola so much," Byron laughed. "Oh, here we go, it's back. Kristina! The game's back on!"

Ezra didn't even know what happened after that. Just like that a flash of blonde rushed passed him, landing on the couch, halfway on the actual couch and halfway on Mike. "Hey Mr. Fitz," she greeted, not taking her eyes off of the television. Ezra noticed there were now 5 beads and a button on Kristina's "Date Bracelet."

Kristina finally noticed her_ English teacher _was sitting a seat away from her. "Wait, why is he here?"

"Eh, he comes over a lot. He's a family friend and all of that-" Mike answered, but his answer was cut off by his rage to the game. "Oh my god did you see that! I can do better! No one does offense like that!"

"Shh. Look at that. It's not the offense, it's the defense. Do you see it?" Ezra pointed out.

"Um… Oh my god, that's what we do; that's our defense!"

"Yup. You guys may not be able to catch me at practice, but I'm teaching you the best defense out there. And you'll see how the drills come in handy at the game."

"Even holding girls on our shoulders?"

"Nah, that was just for fun," Ezra laughed. "You should've seen you guy's faces. You people are pathetic."

Mike just chuckled and rolled his eyes.

Ella laughed as all of the men-and Kristina- stood up saying "Oh" to many times for their own good in anticipation and excitement. Their fun was run short when the guy with the ball tumbled and fell over right before making his point. They all did a universal "Aw" and sat down.

"You boys are hysterical," Ella laughed.

Kristina scoffed and yelled, "Hey!"

"Kristina, tonight you may as well be one of the boys," she smiled, pointing to Kristina stuffing her face with popcorn. Kristina laughed, getting her point and brushed her hands on her shorts-Ella took note that the shorts were way shorter than they needed to be.

"Need any help in the kitchen? It's a commercial break," Kristina offered.

"Then why are the three of them still watching TV?"

"Car commercial," Kristina laughed, getting up from the couch and stealing a kiss from Mike in the process. He wasn't paying her any attention; he was only interested in the commercial.

"Ya know, mom, I'm 16 next year…" Mike suggested.

"No."

"You know, Ella, I have a paying job…" Byron smirked.

This time Ella laughed, slapping Byron with the dish towel in her hand. "No! You want a turn Ezra? I'll tell you "No", too."

"No thanks, my parents already got me a new car for college graduation, I'm good." He gave his full attention to Ella as he spoke to her, which Ella extremely appreciated.

"Can I trade him for one of you two?" Ella joked. Ezra laughed, which made Byron pay attention to Ella.

"Yeah, mom, I'd love spaghetti," Mike waved her off, not giving her the time of day.

"Now what are you-Mike!" Kristina hit Mike upside the head. "Victoria's Secret commercial? Really Mike?"

Mike laughed. "Sorry, but those are meant for men, not women. Girls know that exists and can go into the store without a second glance, ya know?"

"You are such a loser," Kristina teased.

"Thank you. So mom, we are having spaghetti, right?"

Ella retreated back to the kitchen, calling to her son, "Of course, it's Kristina's favorite. But you boys did ruin your appetite, you know. Especially you, Mike."

"Yeah… but it's your spaghetti and I'm a growing boy! I'll eat at least three bowls," Mike smiled.

"You pig!" Kristina laughed.

"We're really going to play that game?"

"Only if you can catch me," Kristina challenged, running. Mike got up and ran after her, almost knocking over the table in the process. Kristina ran all the way up the stairs and Mike was catching up to her. All of that running he had to do at and after practice really made him quicker on his feet.

As soon as both teenagers were upstairs Byron nudged Ezra in the side with his elbow. "They won't be back down for a while."

"I know, right?"

Aria came flying down the stairs, but stopped when she saw Ezra. "Mom," she whined. "I told you not to kidnap Ezra! He has a life, ya know!"

"I didn't kidnap him, he was watching the lacrosse game with your father, brother and Kristina," Ella told Aria, stirring a bowl of spaghetti sauce in the process.

"Whatever, I'm going to Spencer's."

"No, you aren't. We have guests. You aren't allowed to go out for dinner with guests at the house, you know that," Ella said.

"Kristina's basically family and I'll take her out for pizza tomorrow, kay?"

"Are you going to take Ezra with you too? He's staying for dinner and so are you."

This caught Ezra by surprise. He did not agree to that. "Um, Ella, I don't want to intrude-"

"You aren't intruding," Ella insisted. She looked at Aria seriously and said, "And you aren't leaving, understand?"

Aria rolled her eyes and sighed. "Fine."

**Giant filler. That's all this is. Filler, filler, filler.**

**NLL=National Lacrosse League btw :D If you didn't figure it out.**

**Eh, the first part was a little intense; the rest of it was light, though. Very light. Not fluffy, exactly, just light. Normal, even. O.O**

**But Ezzy's having dinner at the Montgomery's! Woot! Awkward alert!**

**And how cute was Mike? I just love him. I don't even want to example his anger issues he's so cute! :D **

**Didn't you just love that family bonding time? I thought it was cute :D**

**I UPDATED AJUSTMENTS AND SACRIFICES, FOOLS! You thought I forgot about it, huh? But, no, I just accidently didn't save the best chapter ever that could ever appear in A&S that I still haven't rewritten yet! Hahaha oops :D I'll get to that later… maybe :)**

**Well, that's all I got for now! Tell me what you think I should include throughout the dinner and GUESS what "A" wants Aria to do.**

**Review Please!**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	9. What You Know Might Kill You

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 9-What You Know Might Kill You**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**LOOOOOOOOONG CHAPTER!**

**General POV**

_Aria came flying down the stairs, but stopped when she saw Ezra. "Mom," she whined. "I told you not to kidnap Ezra! He has a life, ya know!"_

_"I didn't kidnap him, he was watching the lacrosse game with your father, brother and Kristina," Ella told Aria, stirring a bowl of spaghetti sauce in the process._

_"Whatever, I'm going to Spencer's."_

_"No, you aren't. We have guests. You aren't allowed to go out for dinner with guests at the house, you know that," Ella said._

_"Kristina's basically family and I'll take her out for pizza tomorrow, kay?"_

_"Are you going to take Ezra with you too? He's staying for dinner and so are you."_

_This caught Ezra by surprise. He did not agree to that. "Um, Ella, I don't want to intrude-"_

_"You aren't intruding," Ella insisted. She looked at Aria seriously and said, "And you aren't leaving, understand?"_

_Aria rolled her eyes and sighed. "Fine."_

"Oh, stop being such a drama queen," Ella teased. Mike came down the stairs hand-in-hand with Kristina. Ezra and Byron laughed at him, and Aria tried not to. Ella walked up to her son and said, "You have a little lipstick right there, Mike." Ella went to wipe it off, but Kristina stopped her.

"Oh, don't worry, I got it," Kristina laughed. "Oh, you know what? I can't see that well in here. I think there's better lighting upstairs, c'mon Mike." She smirked and grabbed his hand and dragged him upstairs. Something told all of the adults-and Aria-they would be doing a little more than removing lipstick.

Ella laughed and called, "Hurry back! Dinner's ready."

Mike and Kristina came running down the stairs quickly, knocking things-and people-over and bumping into each other. They both took their seats and started grabbing for food.

"Whoa," Ezra commented, but Byron just shrugged and joined them, in a more civilized way of course. Ella took her normal seat and that left two seats: Aria and Ezra's seats. And with their _great _luck they were sitting next to each other.

"So, Mike, how's that history report going?"

Mike looked up at her suspiciously. "History report?"

"Yes, Mr. Krayne told me about it. It's due next Monday. Am I ringing any bells?"

"Did he assign it Tuesday?"

"Yes."

Mike took a large interest in his spaghetti and Ella knew he wasn't telling her something. She turned to Aria, "What did he do?"

When Aria wouldn't respond Ella asked again, "What?"

"I-I got in a fight and was in the principal's office during 5th through 8th period," Mike muttered.

"_Excuse me?"_

"I got in a fight, mom," Mike said more audibly.

"Michelangelo!"

"Aw, mom, not the full name," Mike pleaded, trying to hide behind his spaghetti as Kristina tried not to giggle.

"Mike, I thought we agreed on no more fights!"

Mike groaned. "It wasn't my fault mom."

"How is it not? What did he do that was so bad?"

Mike blushed slightly when he answered. "Well, Connor Thomas, um, he said some things about Kristina that didn't belong in his mouth."

"So?"

Mike answered shyly, "I punched him in the mouth."

"Mike!"

"Wait, Connor Thomas? His jaw is broken," Ezra said, butting into the conversation. "He has to wear a head brace, now."

"Is that what's on his face? I thought he was insane or something," Aria laughed.

"I know, right! The first day I saw him with it I thought he had be abducted!" Kristina giggled. "But then Mike told me the story."

"And what did you do?" Aria asked, smirking.

"I punched him, of course."

"Then she kissed me and said thank you," Mike added, pecking Kristina on the lips. This earned an "aw" from Aria, which in turn got a noodle thrown on her, courtesy of Mike. Aria squealed and threw it off of her as if it was diseased, and Ezra helped her clean the sauce from her blouse.

"You're still in trouble with me, Mike."

"I told him I was sorry!"

"Not good enough."

"Aw," Mike complained. But he just shrugged and went back to his spaghetti.

Twenty minutes later everyone had finished eating and Mike was walking Kristina home. They got up to her house and sat on the bench on the front porch.

"That was fun," Kristina laughed.

"Yeah, it was. 7th date." Mike rummaged through is pockets. "Darn, where'd I put it?" he mumbled to himself.

"Put what?"

"The bead for your bracelet. I could have sworn I had it." Mike gave up and sighed. "I'm so sorry, I can't find it."

"It's okay; you can just get me two next time." She kissed his cheek and got up to walk inside. Mike noticed the button on her bracelet. They'd gotten it at a homemade jewelry stand at a fair last week. That gave Mike an idea.

"Wait, come back here," Mike smiled. Kristina raised her brow at him, but obeyed. Mike started untying a button from his dress shirt which made Kristina curious.

"What are you…?"

"I got it," Mike smiled. He'd given up on untying the small button and just ripped it off. He then untied Kristina's bracelet and tried to put the button on. Kristina saw his struggle and helped him, and once it was on Mike retied the knot on the string bracelet.

"Aw, Mike, it's perfect," Kristina smiled, hugging him. She pulled back from the hug after a little while and smiled. "I should go inside."

"Bye."

"See you tomorrow."

_I love you_, Mike thought. "Um, Kristina?"

She turned back to face him and grinned. "Yeah, Mike?"

"Um-I-uh-C-Can I walk you to school?" _God_, he thought, _that was a total fail_.

She giggled and responded, "Of course, you walk me every day, silly."

"Oh, yeah."

"See you tomorrow."

"Uh, yeah." Mike gave her a small wave goodbye, which she returned.

Once she shut the door he made his way down the steps and sighed, "Damn."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Ezra swung the door to his apartment open on Aria's third knock.

"Hey, why are you here at," he stopped to look at his watch, "eleven twenty at night?"

She pushed passed him, letting herself in without a second thought. This took him by surprise, but he just brushed it off. When he turned her way after closing the door he didn't see Aria. No, Aria was the confident, bold, smiling, beautiful girl he'd fallen for. The girl in front of him was still beautiful, but she looked _terrified_. She was sitting on the couch, head in her hands, shaking. Ezra wasn't sure if he should hold her or keep his distance.

As he stepped closer to her, she spoke, "I only have forty minutes." Her voice shook as she spoke, and she sounded slightly hoarse.

He couldn't help himself from asking, "Until what?"

As her eyes met his he gained a better understanding of the intensity of her fear. "Midnight."

Aria was beginning to scare him. "W-what's midnight?"

"I leave at midnight."

This caught him of guard. "Leave? Where?"

"Bradley. Uh, Bradley, Oklahoma."

"W-why? When will you be back?"

Aria tore her eyes from Ezra's, taking a sudden interest in the floor. "I have to go away. I-I have to leave forever."

Ezra stepped closer to Aria. "Aria, you're scaring me."

Tears started streaming down her face. "I-I'm so sorry."

"Why? Is your family moving?"

"No. They aren't. It's just me. They-they don't even know I'm going." She stood up, almost losing her balance in the process. "I need to go, my plane leaves soon and-" As she was walking toward the door she broke down. She couldn't bring herself to leave. Her feet and legs stopped moving as she started crying. Ezra moved over to her and hugged her.

"Why? Why are you leaving, Aria?"

"If I don't everyone will know our secret by morning, I have to do this. I'm protecting you." She pushed her way from his grasp. Her face was still tear-stained, but she was finished crying. She refused to be the baby in this situation. It was her problem and she would have to deal with it.

"You aren't going to Bradley, Oklahoma to protect me Aria. What will happen to us?"

"We will be nonexistent! No one will know! You'll be safe and I won't have to date Noel! It's the only way."

Ezra caught on to the one thing Aria wanted him to miss. "Noel? This is about _Noel_?"

"No, this isn't about Noel! This is about the safety of everyone I care about. The deal is I have to date Noel and get him to fall in love with me. I have to dump you and kiss Noel by midnight or our secret is out."

Ezra paused, looking for the right words for his response. "Deal? That sounds more like a threat."

"It is. It's a terrible threat. Someone way scarier than pathetic old Noel is threatening me, and my bet is that they'll do a lot more than tell our secret. They'll twist the story and make it seem like we did a lot more than we did." With that Aria turned toward the door. She rested her hand on the doorknob and prepared herself to turn it and never come back.

"Aria," Ezra breathed out, more confused than ever.

Aria sighed, taking her hand off of the doorknob. She turned toward him and asked, "Before I go, can you do something for me?"

Ezra didn't miss a beat when he answered, "Anything."

And just like that Aria was kissing Ezra. But Ezra knew this was way more than a goodbye kiss. Aria wanted something more from this, something that _could_ get them in trouble.

"Aria… I don't think…. This is bad," Ezra said in between kisses. His hands and his brain weren't corresponding correctly because his mind said, "This is wrong," while his hands were unbuttoning her jacket.

Aria pulled back suddenly and begged, "This is the last time I'll see you. I need this, please."

"I-I"

"Say yes Ezra."

He shook his head and prayed this wasn't the wrong decision. While his head shook no his lips said, "Yes."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria woke up the next morning to her phone alarm. She rolled over to turn it off when she saw it was actually a text message.

**UNKNOWN**

**Hmm… did his performance last night get him an A plus? Now he really **_**can**_** go jail. But since you ended up hurting yourself more with this move, I'll keep your secret… for now. Your welcome, bitch; don't say I never did anything for you. Xoxo –A**

Aria jumped out of the bed, realizing it wasn't her bed and that Ezra was sleeping next to her. But when the sheets had revealed her body she realized that she was fully clothed. Well, almost fully clothed. She was in an undershirt and her panties, but at least she wasn't _naked_. That's when she remembered what happened.

"_Say yes Ezra."_

_He shook his head and prayed this wasn't the wrong decision. While his head shook no his lips said, "Yes."_

_Aria kissed him again and their hands went to work. He was faster with the buttons, being older and more experienced, but Aria wasn't far behind. Once Ezra was down a vest and a shirt-leaving his chest bare-and Aria was left in an undershirt, bra and panties Ezra stopped._

"_Aria, I said yes. But, yes later." Aria gave him a strange look and he rephrased. "_Yes_, but not now."_

_Aria tried to catch her breath and asked, "Why not?"_

"_Because, you aren't leaving, you aren't going anywhere. Let our secret be out. But if we do this and our secret gets out _then _we'll be in trouble."_

_Aria sighed. "You're right."_

Aria gasped. "How did "A" know?" was not the question she was asking herself. "How did "A" NOT know?" is what Aria was interested in. How on earth did "A" know that they almost did, but not catch on that they _didn't_?

Now Aria was paranoid. What if "A" did know, and just wanted Aria to think she didn't know. Every scenario was running through her head. Her thought process was interrupted by her phone.

Kesha's _Blow _rang throughout the apartment a lot louder than it should have, waking Ezra. He sat up, rubbing his eyes. Aria whipped out her phone and answered it quickly to stop the noise.

"Hello?"

"Aria! Where have you been? You disappeared last night! I called all of the girls' mothers and they said you weren't with them. I'm at Ali's memorial now and was just at her grave a few minutes ago. Aria, sweetie, where are you?"

Her mother was yelling so loud through the phone Ezra heard her, and once he did he mouthed, "Holy crap."

**OH. MY. GOD. Okay, I knew the main points I wanted to hit in this chapter but I have this killer writer's block that is giving me a headache. I just COULD. NOT. THINK. I am so sorry if it's terrible. This was supposed to be one of the most critical chapters but it turned into a pile of rejection because I couldn't seem to write anything. Ugh.**

**Soooo… how do you expect Aria to lie herself out of this one? **

**And I love writing Kristina/Mike fluff. It's just so much FUN! :D Soooo… when should Mike say, "I love you" to Kristina? Soon? Or do you want to see all of the times he tries to but fails epically XDDDD **

**Anyway, I apologize for the suckyness of this chapter once again. I am ashamed -.-**

**Thank you for all of the lovely reviews! 130? You guys ROCK! I LOVE YOU ALL! :DDDDDD**

**Oh well, please review anyway. Help me be inspired :D**

**So, uh, yeah, Review please!**

**Love Always (even when you may not love me back),**

**-randomness**


	10. Hardy's Home

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 10-Hardy's Home**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Kesha's __Blow __rang throughout the apartment a lot louder than it should have, waking Ezra. He sat up, rubbing his eyes. Aria whipped out her phone and answered it quickly to stop the noise._

_"Hello?"_

_"Aria! Where have you been? You disappeared last night! I called all of the girls' mothers and they said you weren't with them. I'm at Ali's memorial now and was just at her grave a few minutes ago. Aria, sweetie, where are you?"_

_Her mother was yelling so loud through the phone Ezra heard her, and once he did he mouthed, "Holy crap."_

Aria's mind went into hyper-drive. And whenever her mind went haywire she became the best liar ever. "Don't worry, mom. I'm safe."

"_Where are you safe?"_

"In Ezra's apartment," Aria said calmly until she realized the wrong thing slipped out of her mouth. Ezra slapped his forehead knowing things could only go downhill from here.

"What?_ Why?"_

"Well, you know that mystery boy?"

"_Yeah…"_

"Yeah, well that bastard broke my heart and I needed to clear my head so I went for a walk. It started raining and I was too cold and wet to go anywhere. But, luckily, Ezra drove past the library-where I was-and he took me to his apartment because it was closer and I was literally freezing to death. He was going to call you but it must have just slipped his mind. Would you like to talk to him?"

Ezra's jaw dropped. That was the most intelligent, well thought out lie he'd ever heard.

"_Um, no. Just thank him, will you. And will you ask him to drop you off at the game today? Mike's riding with Noel and I can't take you, and since you're already there…"_

"I'm sure it will be fine, mom. Love you, and I'm sorry."

"_It's okay, hun. I'm just glad Ezra found you. I love you too. Bye."_

Aria ended the call and saw Ezra smirking at her. "What?"

"You are a pretty little liar," he smiled, pronouncing each syllable of the last three words defiantly for emphasis.

"And you're a handsome, tall truther," Aria teased.

Ezra wasn't sure how to respond, so he kept quiet. He noticed how beautiful she looked; without her makeup, hair thrown in a messy bun, and half of her clothes missing.

He cupped her face before kissed her gently and breathing out, "I love you."

She placed her hand on top of his, taking in the cliché of the moment. Right as she was about to respond, a knock came to the door.

"I'd better get that," Ezra sighed, taking himself away from Aria. Not many people came to his apartment unannounced. That's why he shut the door immediately after he saw his best friend standing on the other side.

Ezra laughed, and Aria tried hard not to. Hardy rolled his eyes from the other side and called, "Ezra, let me in; you know I don't care if your girlfriend is in there with you."

Ezra swung the door open, fearful that Hardy might yell something else down the halls.

"Hey," Hardy greeted as he walked in. "Hey, Ez, don't seem so tense. It's only me." Aria giggled at this, which brought Hardy's eyes to her. He walked over to her and took hold of her hand gently. "You know, Miss Aria, you get more beautiful each time I see you." He brought her hand to his lips then kissed her hand gently.

Ever since Ezra's reading Hardy knew their secret, and made sure that the two love birds knew he knew. He'd stop by every now and then entirely abruptly and, quite honestly, in the middle of one of Aria and Ezra's 'moments'. Aria was actually pretty impressed that he didn't walk in on them the night before.

Hardy let go of Aria's hand and threw himself on the couch, landing perfectly in the center. "So, what have you two been up to?"

Ezra shrugged. "Nothin much, you?"

Hardy sat up on the couch, facing Ezra and smiling. "You will never guess what I did, dude."

Ezra just rolled his eyes; the last time Hardy said something like that he'd found 50 cents on the curb. "What?"

"I got an apartment here in Rosewood and got myself a job!" Ezra started laughing and Hardy asked, "What?"

"You almost got me there, now seriously, what happened?"

"I'm not kidding. I'm working in the library, and my apartment is only a few buildings over from the library."

Ezra stopped laughing and smirked. "That is very impressive."

"I know. Hey, you wanna go out for some burgers? My treat; I even have the cash to pay for it."

Ezra looked at his watch. "Actually I have to go to lacrosse practice. Our game is at two." He put his coat on and helped Aria into hers, as Hardy laughed.

"You play? At your age? Dude, that's a new low."

"First of all, I coach. Today is our first game and we have to prepare. And you're 5 months older than me, remember?"

Hardy scoffed. "At least I don't laugh in my sleep. Can I come? Please?"

"Sure, we could always use the support."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"I can't believe this is happening," Ezra sighed. They were losing hard. Twelve points hard. And with a minute left, they might as well forfeit.

"They aren't doing anything you told them, and since Mike got benched…" Aria was trying to be supportive, but her eating the snow-cone that she'd bought from a better-than-average-looking guy wasn't helping. Aria told him not to be jealous of Jeff because it was only for a school fundraiser. Ezra ignored that, only thinking about how dumb of a name "Jeff" was.

"Hey, not my fault he got benched _and_ got a slip." Mike had made the mistake of being 'too violent' in the game and the ref gave him a slip and told him he was benched for the rest of the game. And since Mike was benched the team's score stayed at 6. And that was in the first quarter.

After the game Ezra tried to be as encouraging as possible. The mom's offered to buy ice cream, and that's when Hardy spoke up.

While standing at the top of the bleachers Hardy yelled into the bullhorn he'd taken from Ezra. "What are you doing? Ice cream after a defeat like that? No, we're going to stay here and show you what you did wrong and how to fix it. You will not be the losers."

This caught the boys' attention. "What are you going to teach us?" Noel piped up.

Hardy smiled. "I thought you'd never ask." He ran down the bleachers and smiled. "First of all, you were way too slow. Let's run the bleachers." Ezra smirked and followed his best friend as they ran through the home team bleachers with the teenagers trailing behind them; they ran through every aisle one-by-one twenty times.

Once they'd finished that they scrimmaged. They scrimmaged until it was basically impossible for either team to make a point, and that took a while. The moms had stuck around giving out waters and bandaging 'boo boos'. Kristina even stayed, encouraging Mike and feeding him bites of her snow cone (the moms borrowed the school's "Fundraiser Snow Cone Machine") during his break time.

They had sweat, passed out, threw up, cried (poor Davis…), and fallen many times before they'd finally gotten it perfect enough to tickle Hardy and Ezra's fancy.

Ezra looked at his watch: _10:48 p.m. _Everybody had gone home in the past twenty minutes and he was the only one left. He went to grab the last bag and saw that Aria had fallen asleep on the bleachers. He smiled and picked her up as if she were a small child, balancing her on one hip as he grabbed the final bag and fastened in on his shoulder. Once the bag was secure he made a seat with his arms for Aria to rest in as he crossed the field on the way to the parking lot.

They'd gotten to his apartment a few minutes later. He laid her on the bed and sent her mother a very general text saying: _Sleeping at one of the girls' houses. See you tomorrow._ He knew she planned on doing this herself, but had missed the opportunity by dozing off. He kissed her forehead gently and sighed.

Today had been a long day.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Three weeks had passed by and the team was doing wonderful. The past three games were great; they won every one by a long shot. Ezra's relationship with all of the guys was better, and so many of them had beaten Ezra at the end of practice that the after-school ritual had been abolished.

Mike and Kristina were getting closer. Mike still couldn't get the three words out of his mouth but Kristina's "Date Bracelet" now had 16 beads, 3 buttons, and a safety pin (don't ask).

Aria and Ezra _weren't_ doing as good. Hardy spent every waking second with Ezra, stealing him away from Aria completely. She felt like a total third wheel and stopped making her random visits to Ezra's apartment all together.

"So, what are you going to do about it?" Spencer asked from her comfortable spot on couch, looking at her friends who were scattered around the kitchen. Aria was hanging out with the girls today at Spencer's house to drain herself from her own self pity.

Aria plopped herself onto the couch next to Spencer. "I don't know!" she groaned as she went to take another bite of her ice cream, only to realize that she'd finished the small carton already.

"Why don't you talk to him? Maybe he doesn't realize what he's doing," Emily offered, giving Aria a fresh small carton of ice cream.

"And if he's doing it on purpose, dump his sorry ass and join me in Single's Ville," Hanna said. She had been dumped yet again and was still feeling bitter. But, knowing Hanna, she'd get over it soon enough.

Aria sighed, ignoring Hanna entirely. "Emily's right. Maybe he doesn't realize what's going on."

"Yeah, I bet he has no clue. Just talk to him, Aria, I promise it will be okay," Spencer encouraged her.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

As Aria knocked on the door she immediately regretted it. She wasn't sure if she was ready for this confrontation. The door swung open before she had the chance to walk away.

"Hey," Ezra smiled. Aria could tell it was forced, as if he'd just received bad news moments before.

"Is this a bad time?"

"Why would it be a bad time? I always have time for you." He inched closer to her to give her a kiss, but she pushed him away and walked in. "Did I do something?"

Aria whirled around and answered flatly, "Yes."

"What?"

"You always have time for me Ezra? Not the past couple of weeks! You only have time for _Hardy_." Ezra laughed which riled Aria up even further. "What the hell is so funny?"

"You say it like it's a bad thing, Aria."

"It is a bad thing! You don't make time for me anymore."

"I didn't make time for you before, Aria."

Aria scoffed. "Yes you did! We hung out all of the time."

Ezra smiled lightheartedly. "Don't take this the wrong way, but, that's when I had no one else to hang out with. And I've tried to set up dates with you in the past three weeks and _you_ were busy seeing _your_ friends."

Aria stopped for a second, letting all that he'd said sink in. "That-that's different. Entirely different."

"How is it different? Aria, we're more alike than you think."

"In some ways we're exactly the same. But in some ways we're polar opposites."

"Name one," Ezra scoffed.

"I don't lie to you." _I must lie to you more than I think, because that was a lie in itself_, Aria thought immediately after.

This took Ezra by surprise. "Excuse me? You lie to me all of the time."

"I do not!"

"Yes, you do!"

"About what, exactly, Mr. Ezra Fitz?" Aria demanded.

Ezra picked up his phone slowly and shoed Aria the text.

**Hey, Ezzy, you're little girlfriend doesn't feel loved. How about you make love? Haha, I bet that would boost her self-esteem. It also boosts your chances of going to jail. Have fun with THAT. TTYL, Ez. Don't worry-I will be back to haunt you. Xoxo -A**

"Who's "A"?"

**Dun. Dun. Duuuuuuuuuuuun. XP**

**My "A" note was terrible. And I'm truly sorry. :(**

**Okay, so, .dreamers proposed an excellent idea, saying I should do a spin-off with Kristina and Mike, and Mike tried to say "I love you." SO, I'm going to make this a little more interesting by posting a little epilogue type thing at the end of this story. It will be a big list of all the ways Mike COULD have said "I Love You" to Kristina, but failed, then it will list the one way he DID say it. Some of them will be used throughout this story, though. I think it'll be great, how about you? If you have any ideas for this, please don't hesitate to tell me. I'll most likely add it and give you credit for the idea.**

**Sorry it took so long to update. I would have had it earlier but my sorry excuse for a brother deleted it. D: Why couldn't all brothers be as wonderful as Mike (in this story)? Ugh.**

**Guess what I learned? I was watching an Ian Harding interview and he said that he couldn't play lacrosse to save his life. Hahaha Oops XD **

**Oh, and no, I don't know why I had the need to (put every other word in parenthesis) but I did, and I apologize.**

**Please review :) This chapter took me forever and I'd really appreciate the feedback :O**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	11. In The Dark Of The Night

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 11-In The Dark Of The Night**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

"_How is it different? Aria, we're more alike than you think."_

"_In some ways we're exactly the same. But in some ways we're polar opposites."_

"_Name one," Ezra scoffed._

"_I don't lie to you." I must lie to you more than I think, because that was a lie in itself, Aria thought immediately after._

_This took Ezra by surprise. "Excuse me? You lie to me all of the time."_

"_I do not!"_

"_Yes, you do!"_

"_About what, exactly, Mr. Ezra Fitz?" Aria demanded._

_Ezra picked up his phone slowly and shoed Aria the text._

_**Hey, Ezzy, you're little girlfriend doesn't feel loved. How about you make love? Haha, I bet that would boost her self-esteem. It also boosts your chances of going to jail. Have fun with THAT. TTYL, Ez. Don't worry-I will be back to haunt you. Xoxo -A**_

"_Who's "A"?"_

Aria paled. Her throat became dry and her eyes grew wide. She grabbed the phone from his grasped and reread it a few timed before finally speaking. "W-When did you get this?"

"Aria, is this some kind of joke?"

Her eyes became tear brimmed as she said in a stronger tone, "When did you get this text, Ezra."

Ezra's brow furrowed. He didn't know what was going on, but he had a feeling it would be bad. "Uh, like an hour ago, why?"

Aria sighed. That was when she was at Spencer's house eating her weight in ice cream. "A" really knew her every move.

Aria started pacing, trying to stay calm. She was usually extremely good at keeping calm in situations. But "A" was a whole different playing field, and it scared the shit out of her.

"Aria…? Is everything okay?"

_He has got to be kidding_, Aria thought. She stopped pacing and faced him, biting her lip. "Ezra… I might have put you in a bit of danger."

Now Ezra thought this just _had_ to be a joke. But he knew the _"Gotcha!"_ wasn't coming any time soon. "Excuse me?"

"Okay, um, I'm going to tell you something that you may find a bit… troubling, but trust me, it's the least of your problems right now."

"Aria…"

"My friends know about us," she blurted out before he had the chance to stop her.

"Who knows what?"

"They know and I'm so sorry, but when I tell you about this right here," the motioned to the phone in her hand and continued, "Then you won't blame me."

"I don't blame you now it's just-"

Aria shushed him with her finger. She used Ezra's phone to call Hanna just because it was in her hand already. She needed all of the girls here _now_.

"_Umm… Mr. Fitz?"_ Hanna asked uncertainly. Aria heard yelling in the background from a voice that sounded like Spencer's. She assumed Spencer went for the phone after that, because the next thing heard was a lot of rustling.

Aria's suspicions were correct, Spencer spoke next. "_Mr. Fitz? Er-Ezra? Is it Aria? Is she okay? I have no clue why you're a contact in Hanna's phone but-"_

"Spence, calm down; it's me."

_Spencer let out a sigh of relief. "Oh, what's up?"_

"Ezra got an "A" message, and I have a feeling he'll be getting more." There was silence on the other end and Aria asked, "Spence?"

"_We'll be there in five minutes."_

Spencer hung up and Aria set Ezra's phone on the coffee table. She sat on the couch, holding her head in her hands. Ezra sat next to her, rubbing her back trying to comfort her.

There was knocking on the door all but five minutes later. Aria ran up to it and swung it open. She was greeted mournfully by her friends, as if someone died.

"Boxes?" Ezra asked, referring to the boxes in Spencer, Hanna, and Emily's hands. "What's in them?"

Aria opened the first one and smiled. It was a box full of blankets. The second one held a few pillows and the last held a coffee maker, coffee, mugs, hot chocolate and things of the sort.

"Where's the text?" Hanna asked, as if they'd rehearsed it. But they hadn't; none of them even saw this coming. They all expected to be sleeping over at Spencer's house, giggling and gossiping, not explaining to their ex-AP English teacher that he's being stalked by a crazy freak.

Aria grabbed the phone and handed it to Hanna. Spencer looked over Hanna's shoulder to read the text while Emily gave Aria a reassuring hug.

"Damn," Hanna whispered. "This is very…."

"Bad," Spencer finished for Hanna, "Very, very bad. How did we get him into this?"

"No, I was going to say revealing," Hanna giggled, despite the circumstances. "I thought you said you didn't-"

"We didn't. "A" thinks we did. I'm not sure if that's bad or good," Aria whispered so that Ezra couldn't hear.

Emily, Spencer, and Hanna looked at each other.

"It's bad," Spencer said.

"Way bad," Emily added.

Hanna decided to top it off, "Super bad."

Aria sighed. "We have to tell him everything. Start to finish without leaving out a detail. We'll show him a few of our texts, a-and just try to fix this, okay?"

"Okay," Spencer sighed. Hanna and Emily nodded their heads in agreement.

Aria threw a blanket to Ezra along with a pillow as Spencer made her way to start making coffee. Since the coffee maker made one cup at a time, it didn't take long before everyone was seated in the small living room with a coffee mug in hand.

Ezra and Aria shared a blanket, and Aria adjusted herself so her head was resting on his shoulder. She silently inhaled the coffee and sighed.

"Who wants to start?" Spencer asked from her place on the small chair. Emily tugged on the blanket she had wrapped around her, covering her face a little more, signaling she didn't want to start. Hanna shook her head violently, and Spencer just looked at Aria, expecting her to start.

"Wait, why are we drinking coffee at ten o'clock on a Friday night?" Ezra asked, wondering how bad "A" could possibly be.

Aria took a sip of her coffee, then set it back down on her lap, letting her fingers trace small circles on the hot cup. She licked her lips, catching all of the excess coffee from them, then bit her lip hard, giving herself a taste of the pain to come.

She took a deep breath in and another out before she spoke. "Because… it's going to be a long night."

**Okay, total filler. I'm posting something now to hold you guys over. Why? Because my head hurts, I can't think, and**

**SO I'm not finished with this story yet, but I already know there will be a spin-off/sequel. Here's the uncondensed summary: **

_**Family vacation! That's just what the Montgomery house needs. And to Florida; what could be better? But what happens when their flight gets cancelled so they decide to just take a road trip to Florida instead? Oh, and Ezra and Mike's girlfriend, Kristina, tag along. So it's six people in a car for six days, and they are all basically family. Oh boy.**_

**Any and all title ideas are needed!**

**And now, people, don't go stealing my idea! It's my own original idea, and I really won't appreciate it if someone goes and changes it a little and calls it their own. It will take me a while to get it up, since I have to finish up this story first, but I'm serious. Don't steal the idea. And if you do I won't be very nice. Sorry, but get your own idea, people!**

**N E Way (Don't you just hate it when people text "Anyway" like that? It's, like, one extra letter people!)**

**Haha MOVING ON!**

**Thanks for all of the wonderful reviews! ****I love reading them all!**

**Review please :)**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	12. We've Got A Secret, Can You Keep It?

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 12-We've Got A Secret, Can You Keep It?**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

"_Who wants to start?" Spencer asked from her place on the small chair. Emily tugged on the blanket she had wrapped around her, covering her face a little more, signaling she didn't want to start. Hanna shook her head violently, and Spencer just looked at Aria, expecting her to start._

"_Wait, why are we drinking coffee at ten o'clock on a Friday night?" Ezra asked, wondering how bad "A" could possibly be._

_Aria took a sip of her coffee, then set it back down on her lap, letting her fingers trace small circles on the hot cup. She licked her lips, catching all of the excess coffee from them, then bit her lip hard, giving herself a taste of the pain to come._

_She took a deep breath in and another out before she spoke. "Because… it's going to be a long night."_

Ezra started playing with a lock of Aria's hair absentmindedly. He twisted it around his finger in a curl, only to uncurl it and let it fall. He repeated this process a few times before Aria finally spoke again.

"It-It all started with…" Aria paused a moment. She wasn't sure what to say. She wasn't even sure where to start. She honestly didn't even know how this started.

"It all started with Alison DiLaurentis," Spencer said.

"Isn't that your…" Ezra started, but hesitated.

Hanna scoffed. "Dead best friend? Yeah."

"If it weren't for her none of us would be here right now," Emily explained.

They each took turns speaking about Alison, after Aria was lost for words or started crying Spencer would pick up where she left off and so on. This took a while; Alison was so complex it was almost impossible to tell her story at all.

"Then, at Ali's funeral we all realized we were all getting these texts," Aria wrapped up.

Spencer showed Ezra all of her texts, she didn't have as many and none of them were mind-blowing secrets, well, they weren't mind-blowing secrets _now_. Emily did the same-just about all of hers were about her being gay anyway. Aria went through all of her texts, showing him each "A" message that was about him. Hanna was the most hesitant, but eventually offered up only a few texts.

They all respected Ezra, not only because he was their ex-teacher or because he was Aria's boyfriend. He was an excellent listener. He didn't interrupt or judge, he just sat there tracing the circles on the pattern of Aria's shirt, listening carefully and absorbing it all.

"Questions?" Spencer offered.

Ezra had so many questions that he could barely get the first one out of his mouth. "You haven't gotten the police involved?"

"After that bitch ran me over, we gave that one up," Hanna scoffed.

"Fair enough."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Hardy snuck into the apartment early the next day and saw the last thing he expected. He laughed hard, causing Ezra, Spencer, and Emily to wake up.

"Why didn't you invite me, dude? I didn't realize you were having a sleepover," Hardy laughed even harder. This awoke Hanna and Aria.

"Hey Hardy," Aria yawned as she stretched. She saw the clock read 8:30 and groaned.

"Yeah, hey Hardy," Hanna flirted. "You a teacher, too?"

Aria shot her a dirty glare and Ezra laughed along with Hardy.

Ezra hugged Aria closer and asked, "So why are you here?"

"I got it," Hardy smiled.

Ezra basically jumped away from Aria, towards Hardy with anticipation. "Really? Let me see it."

Hardy handed him a DVD gaining curiosity from Spencer. "What is that?"

Hardy smirked. "_The Game Of Death_."

Hanna gasped and, like Ezra, leaped towards hardy. "Oh my god, really? We have to watch it!" She took the movie from Ezra's hands and ran towards the DVD player.

Emily threw the covers off of herself and grabbed the movie case that Hanna had thrown across the room. "What's _The Game Of Death_?"

"It's only the newest, best horror movie out there," Hanna gushed.

Emily furrowed her brow. "Isn't that not such a good idea?"

Hanna, Ezra, and Hardy looked at her with disbelief, asking at the same time, "Why?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "Aria gets terrified when she watches horror movies. Remember that one time at Ali's house?"

Aria gasped. That was not one of her high points in life, and she didn't feel like sharing it with her boyfriend and his best friend. "That was a year ago!"

"You couldn't sleep for ages, Aria," Spencer told her. "You wanna go shopping instead? I could use some new sneakers anyway."

"Aw, little Aria can't take it?" Hardy cooed. Ezra threw the box of popcorn he had in his hand at Hardy, but couldn't help but chuckle.

Aria scoffed. "I can watch your pathetic little horror movie, no problem."

"You sure? You don't have to watch it, Aria," Ezra insisted.

"Positive."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

The movie had five minutes left, and Aria was scared to death. She didn't let on that she was scared, though. She looked as if she were bored with it, like the movie had no effect on her.

But Ezra knew something was up. Instead of jumping a little at every "scary part" like the others did-though the boys swore they didn't-Aria clenched tighter to Ezra's arm. He had to pry her away at one point because he was starting to lose circulation.

"That was such a good movie," Hanna smiled as the opening credits started.

"Hey, it's Saturday and none of us have anything to do. It's raining so no lacrosse and the weather is just begging for a movie day. So what do you guys think?" Hardy suggested, eyeing Hanna as he did so.

"I think it's a great idea," Emily smiled, grabbing a handful of popcorn.

"Could we have one a little less scary?" Aria asked softly.

Ezra smiled and rubbed her back affectionately before kissing her head. "Whatever you want."

14 hours, 5 movies and at least 50 bowls of popcorn later they'd finished _Tangled_.

Hanna yawned and sighed. "That was a great movie." She said that after every movie so far. She moved towards the DVD player, accidently brushing past Aria.

Aria let out a shriek and jumped at least 5 feet in the air. This woke up Spencer and Hardy, who had passed out during the movie. She held onto Ezra closely and tried breathe normally again. "Hanna! You scared the life out of me! If anyone sees my heart on the ground please give it back, Hanna made it leap out of my goddamn chest!"

"Aria, are you okay?" Spencer asked, rubbing her eyes.

"I-I'm fine it's just-"

"Oh my god," Hardy laughed. "That movie scared you!" He went to grab a water bottle from the fridge. Aria kept her eyes glued to him, a dirty glare plastered on her face.

"Did not!" Aria spat.

"Aria you're shaking," Ezra chuckled.

"I'm not scared," she huffed.

Hardy snuck behind her and pressed the water bottle to the back of her neck. She squealed once again and clutched Ezra even tighter.

"Not funny," Aria muttered, her face buried in Ezra's chest.

"Hey, put this movie in." Emily handed Hanna a movie and she put it in the DVD player.

"Darn, we're out of popcorn." Hardy slipped on his jacket and grabbed his keys. "I'll be right back, I'm just going to that drugstore across the street to get more."

Aria's phone buzzed a few minutes later. She looked at the text and gasped.

**UNKNOWN**

**You've been away from your family all day. You never know what could happen… or should I say you don't know what DID happen. And yes, it was because of me, bitch. Xoxo –A**

Ezra barely finished reading the text before Aria leaped off of the couch.

"I-I have to get home, I need to know what happened, I-I-"

She was cut off by her phone ringing. She looked at her phone and saw the screen.

_Kristina_

Aria pressed answer, wondering why Kristina was calling her at a quarter to midnight.

"_Aria-I-it." Aria heard Kristina sob._

"What is it Kristina?"

"_It's Mike," she choked out. "H-He's been hurt."_

**Had to upload this in celebration of PLL coming back tomorrow! Who else will be sitting in front of their TV all day watching the all-day-marathon?**

**OoOoOoOoOoh, wuzzup with Mike? I know :D hahaha And it's more bad than it is good :( Poor Mike!**

**Hardy and Hanna? Blech. I was going to do Spencer/Hardy, but I love Toby too much, and since Hanna drops guys like flies I thought it was appropriate.**

**Anyway, this is a pretty big fail chapter, but I don't care, I had to get it up! :)**

**I made up the game of death btw, it's a fail horror movie title, but whatever :/**

**Review please.**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	13. Fear Makes The Heart Grow Fonder

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 13-Fear Makes The Heart Grow Fonder**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Aria's phone buzzed a few minutes later. She looked at the text and gasped._

_**UNKNOWN**_

_**You've been away from your family all day. You never know what could happen… or should I say you don't know what DID happen. And yes, it was because of me, bitch. Xoxo –A**_

_Ezra barely finished reading the text before Aria leaped off of the couch._

"_I-I have to get home, I need to know what happened, I-I-"_

_She was cut off by her phone ringing. She looked at her phone and saw the screen._

_Kristina_

_Aria pressed answer, wondering why Kristina was calling her at a quarter to midnight._

"_Aria-I-it." Aria heard Kristina sob._

"_What is it Kristina?"_

"_It's Mike," she choked out. "H-He's been hurt."_

"What? Where are you?" Kristina kept crying, trying to form a sentence. "Kristina, sweetie, you need to tell me where he is."

Aria heard Kristina try to make out a word that sounded more like hospital than anything. Aria grabbed her purse, slipped her shoes on and ran out the door, not even bothering with her coat. Ezra ran after her, wanting to know what was going on.

"Okay, Kristina, you need to breathe, okay?" Kristina's breathing steadied a little more, and Aria continued, "Now, what happened."

"_There-there was a fight, Aria, and-and it was so bad. They don't know if he-"_ Kristina cried again, and Aria was on the verge of tears. How had "A" staged this? How did "A" know Mike had a problem with getting into fights?

"Okay, I'll be there soon, okay?"

Kristina whimpered and hung up. Aria ran across the parking lot to Ezra's car, speed-walking because of the rain pouring down on her. Spencer had driven her to his apartment the day before because she couldn't bring herself to. She put the keys in the ignition and started the car. She jumped when Ezra opened the door on the driver's side.

"You are not stable enough to drive Aria, let me drive you, please." Aria obeyed, crawling over to the passenger's side. She saw a hoodie of Ezra's on the floor and slipped it over her cold, wet body. "Where are you going, anyway? What happened?"

"Mike is in the hospital and somehow it's "A"'s fault," Aria explained, trying not to cry. "No, scratch that, this is all_ my_ fault."

The rest of the car ride consisted of Ezra trying to make Aria feel better. The second Ezra reached the hospital Aria jumped out of the car, running to the floor her mother had texted her that Mike was on. Ezra decided it would be safer if he didn't go in the hospital with her and drove away prepping himself to tell everyone the little amount of information he knew.

"Kristina!" Aria yelled, running towards Kristina and giving her a hug. Kristina cringed, making Aria jump away from her. "W-what happened to you?"

She had bruises on her arms that suggested someone was grabbing her forcefully. There was a small cut on her forehead that was patched up, but Kristina still looked considerably pale and was drenched head to toe in rain water.

"They threw me around a little, but Mike-he, they weren't as easy on him. Your parents are talking to the doctor now to see if he needs to go in for another surgery."

"Another surgery?" Aria gasped. "As in he's already been in one? Kristina, what the hell happened?"

Kristina breathed in a sharp breath, flashing back to what happened and explaining it to Aria.

_**FLASHBACK**_

"Woo! Go Mike!" Kristina laughed. Mike had decided that since they weren't having a game today because of the rain, he should practice on his own. It was still raining, but that just made it even better in their opinion.

Since Mike was practicing by himself on the huge field he pretended other people were on the field, he would fake dodge and hurl the ball to "another player" to make it more believable.

Mike walked over to her after a while, wanting some water that _wasn't_ falling from the sky to drink. "You know what you should do?" Kristina asked, tossing him a water bottle.

Mike thought for a second. "Kiss you," Mike smiled, leaning in.

Kristina laughed and pushed him away playfully. "No, you should have a victory dance."

"I do have a victory dance, whenever I score I do this," Mike insisted. He did a weird dance that Kristina couldn't help but giggle at.

"That was a dance? I thought you just tripped after every score you made."

"You're gonna pay for that," Mike smiled, as he went for Kristina's arm. She pulled away and ran to the field, but Mike was too fast. He caught her by the waist and repositioned her so she was facing him.

He looked into her eyes and realized this was the perfect moment. He brushed a hair out of her face, which made her smile. "I lo-"

_BOOM! _

Lightning crackled a mile or so away from them and the thunder wasn't far behind. Kristina clenched to Mike a little tighter. She had always feared thunderstorms. They always signaled heartbreak or a bad part in a movie, and most of her worst memories included thunderstorms.

Mike knew this and held her closer. "I think we should go, I'll take you to my house and we'll have some hot chocolate and you can change into some of Aria's clothes. We should warm you up; you're freezing."

"I'd rather borrow a T-shirt from you," Kristina said.

Mike smirked. "Or you can do that."

"And maybe a pair of boxers, too? I want to be comfy after I take a long, hot shower," she flirted.

"You tease!" Mike laughed. Kristina ran away from him, but didn't get far before Mike picked her up by her waist and spun her around playfully.

Their fun was interrupted by a cold voice, "Are you Mike Montgomery?"

Mike stopped and let Kristina out of his grasp slowly. He saw 8 guys in front of him, all built and all threatening. The one who spoke to him was obviously the leader of the "pack", and he didn't look nice and friendly either. "Um, yeah."

"So are you ready?"

"Ready? For what?"

"For me to pummel you, kid," the guy said, inching closer. He showed him his phone, which showed a text that read: _**Meet me the Rosewood high school football field at 10, and b ready 2 fight**_.

"What?" Kristina asked, turning towards Mike. "Mike, you said no more fights!"

"I-I didn't send that! Where did you get that?"

"Then why have I been getting texts all day?" the guy challenged, "And yesterday there were pictures of me-er-you know because you put them all around the school! You graffitied that you did on the lockers. And you know, Richland boys don't fool around and played games."

Richland was Rosewood's rivaling school. They were in close proximity to each other and Richland kids usually played cruel jokes on Rosewood kids. Occasionally Rosewood would fight back, but Richland kids were pretty scary, so that rarely ever happened.

"Richland boys? Mike!" Kristina shrieked.

"Kristina, I don't know what they're talking about I swear. And I'm not about to fight you guys."

Another one of the boys stepped up, smirking evilly. "Well, if you resist, we'll just have to take your little girlfriend first."

Kristina was grabbed roughly by one of the boys and pulled to the side. Kristina resisted, but the boy who held her just tightened his grip. "Ow, stop, you're hurting me," Kristina complained.

"Don't hurt her," Mike growled, punching the guy who held Kristina.

_**END FLASHBACK**_

"A-and after he punched the guy who held me they all started throwing punches and kicks at Mike and one guy… He-he finished it off by hitting Mike on the back of the head with a glass bottle." Kristina continued to sob.

"It's okay, it's okay," Aria cooed. She couldn't believe this. "A" staged it all. "A" sent the texts to the phone, "A" put the pictures of god-knows-what across the school. And the worst part was, Aria couldn't do anything about it.

"I had to watch the whole thing and-and it was terrible," Kristina sighed.

"Where are the boys that, um-"

"The police caught them an hour ago; they're down at the station. The cops are seeing if they'll confess and pay a fine or if we'll need to go to court."

"Kristina Bradson?" a male voice asked. Kristina looked up to see a doctor. "Mike Montgomery would like to see you."

"B-but I thought there were no visitors since he's fresh out of surgery," Kristina sniffled.

"There aren't supposed to be any visitors, but he insisted. He said it was important," the doctor shrugged. He gave her the room number and Kristina made her way to Mike's hospital room.

"Mike?" she asked, pushing the door open slightly.

Mike sat up and smiled. He was in way worse condition, his bruises were more evident and a deeper shade then hers. He had way more cuts and they looked way deeper. Most of the color was drained from his face and his Arm was in a cast.

Kristina ran over to him and hugged him, careful not to hold on too tight. She cried into his shoulder, which caught him way off guard.

"Hey, it's okay. I'm okay." He wiped her tears away and grinned. She didn't know how he could smile at a time like this.

"Okay? Look at you! You're in a hospital bed all… broken."

"You look more broken then I do," Mike said.

"I might as well be! You were the one receiving the pain, but I was the one watching you go through it. Do you know how hard it is to see the guy you love being hurt like that? It was-"

Mike cut her off with a kiss, and Kristina could feel him smiling through it. "What?" she asked.

"I love you, too."

Kristina was taken aback. But then she realized what he said, _I love you too. _As in, she'd said it first. She repeated the words in her previous rant in her head then caught the slip.

"You ass," she smirked.

"You said it, not me," he reminded her. "But I have been working up the courage for a while now."

"How long?"

"I dunno… like a month."

"What were you waiting for?" Kristina asked.

"The perfect moment," he explained, pulling her into the bed with him. He hugged her tighter, and they were wrapped in silence for a small while.

She traced a heart on his cast and asked, "Does it hurt?"

"A little, but they're giving me the best painkillers in the world," Mike chuckled.

"Did you send them those texts? A-and those pictures, was it you?"

"No, it wasn't." He sighed and pulled her closer. "Do you believe me?"

She didn't miss a beat when she answered. "Yes."

****

Back in the waiting room Ella and Aria were making small talk, both not entirely comfortable with sitting in a waiting room anxious to see if Mike was okay or not.

"Aria, I've never seen you wear that sweater before. Wait, is that a men's hoodie?" Ella walked closer to Aria and grinned. "Who's is it?"

Color drained from Aria's face. "N-no one. It's no one's."

"Aw, c'mon Aria; let me see." Ella went for the tag, to see if a name was on there. Aria pushed away but it was too late. Ella read the name on the tag already.

_**Ezra Fitz**_

Ella gasped, "Why do you have Mr. Fitz hoodie?"

Holy crap.

**DAY-UM. Who saw THAT coming? Most of it was Mike/Kristina sob story/fluff. And I've already thought the next chapter through, and the cliffy is going to be BIG. How big? It's "A" face-to-face confrontation big.**

**BUT I'm on vacation until July 6****th****, so you'll have to wait :D Sorry :( PM me if you want some deets… I have a tiny spoiler that I'll just have to share.**

**ANYWAY I'll have a new oneshot coming out soon, so watch out for that :)**

**And should the secret be out? Or should Aria lie her way out… again.**

**Review please :) it makes my day, it truly does.**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	14. The Games 'A' Plays

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 14-The Games "A" Plays**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Back in the waiting room Ella and Aria were making small talk, both not entirely comfortable with sitting in a waiting room anxious to see if Mike was okay or not._

"_Aria, I've never seen you wear that sweater before. Wait, is that a men's hoodie?" Ella walked closer to Aria and grinned. "Who's is it?"_

_Color drained from Aria's face. "N-no one. It's no one's."_

"_Aw, c'mon Aria; let me see." Ella went for the tag, to see if a name was on there. Aria pushed away but it was too late. Ella read the name on the tag already. _

_**Ezra Fitz**_

_Ella gasped, "Why do you have Mr. Fitz hoodie?"_

_Holy crap._

"I-I well, you see I-um..." Aria stopped, realizing that any lie she tried to tell at this point would be worthless. Her mom knew; the secret was out.

"Aria, a-are you dating Mr. Fitz?"

"I," Aria sighed, blocking her face from her mother's view. "Yes. I am."

Ella let a deep breath out, trying to stay calm. "Is he-baby, is he forcing you to do anything? Because I will call the police now, you don't need to be scared."

Aria's head shot up, urgency on her tone. "I'm not scared, Mom. He isn't forcing me, either, if anything he's forcing himself."

"Excuse me?"

"You don't think we've tried to stay away from each other? We have. But we can't because, because I love him mom."

"You-You what? He's really got you fooled, huh?" Ella spat.

"Excuse you! You know Ezra, he's a respectable man and he wouldn't fake anything. You should have seen him when we were together at first; he treated my touch like some kind of poison. It's like he was putting himself trough his own personal hell, but he didn't care because he loved me."

Ella sat down, running her hands trough her hair. She sighed and looked up at her daughter. "Tell him to come here... _now_."

Aria pulled out her phone and dialed his all-too-familiar number. "She knows," she breathed out before he could even speak. "My mom knows; I-I am so sorry, Ezra, I might have just ruined your life." She started crying lightly, trying to hide her tears from Ella in the process.

"Aria, Aria, please don't cry. What did your mom say?"

"She-she wants to see you. I can't tell if she's mad or not. She saw I had your hoodie on a-and this is all my fault."

"It's not your fault Aria. It was an accident, and she was bound to find out sooner or later, right?"

"I-I guess," Aria sniffled. "You know what? You're absolutely right."

"Mhm, aren't I always?" Ezra joked.

This caused a giggle to escape Aria's lips. "I love you," Aria said loud enough for her mother to hear.

"I love you too, and I'll see you in a minute, okay?"

"Okay."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Does your head hurt?" Kristina asked, noticing Mike was massaging his temples. "Oh, baby, are you okay?"

"I'm fine, just a little light headed."

Kristina shrugged and turned back to her Algebra homework that her best friend, Amy, brought to her earlier.

"Don't you think you should actually be going to school instead of letting Amy bring it to you?"

"And leave you here alone with your family? No," Kristina grinned, bending down to kiss Mike.

"I love you," he whispered softly.

Her response was a small moan as Mike kissed her harder. They stayed wrapped up in each other until Mike yelped, grabbing his side.

"Are you okay? I didn't even touch your side; where does it hurt?" Kristina ran her fingers over his chest trying to find the spot. He whimpered once again as her hand reached his stomach. Kristina spotted a doctor walking by and called to him. "Doctor? Can you check on my boyfriend please? I think there might be something wrong."

The doctor walked into the room, smiling. "What is it?"

"He says it hurts right here," Kristina explained, running her hands lightly over the sore spot. "He's already been in surgery once; he was in a bad fight last night."

The doctor ordered Mike to change into hospital pants so he could see his chest without it being too awkward. When Mike arose from the bathroom after changing, the doctor and Kristina gasped. His chest was colored deep reds and purples and blues. "I don't feel that good..." Mike whined. "My head..."

"I think he's bleeding internally. He needs to be put in surgery _now_," the doctor said urgently.

And that's when Mike collapsed on the floor.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"So this has been going on since labor day?" Ella asked.

"Yes, mom," Aria answered, tightening her grip on Ezra's hand.

"Not to get off track or be rude, but where is Mr. Montgomery?" Ezra asked.

Ella scoffed. "Since when do you call him Mr. Montgomery?"

"Since you looked at me like you want to strangle me, Mrs. Mont-"

"_Ella_, call me Ella please. _Byron_ is at work, and I don't want to strangle you. I just want answers."

"Mom, are you going to... Tell?"

"Not if there's no forcing going on. And as long as you haven't... slept together. Because that would change everything."

"No, um, but we almost did..." Aria said silently.

"Excuse me? Ezra Fitz you almost sleep with my daughter? Good thing she stopped you or I would-"

"Actually, he stopped me. I was the one who was initiating the idea and he knew we couldn't."

"Aria... Didn't your father and I raise you better than that?"

"I'm sorry it was- I thought it would be our last night together and I needed a solid memory, but he knew it wasn't right and stopped. End of story."

"Okay, fine. But, Aria, why didn't you tell me?"

"I can't tell you everything, mom. And that's when you and dad were having your problems and I didn't want to screw things up more." A tear fell down her cheek.

"Oh, Aria," Ezra sighed, pulling her in. "Please don't cry."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"Please don't cry," Mike pleaded weakly after he got out of surgery.

"Mike, you're in critical condition. You lost a lot of blood and for god's sake, look at this!" she picked up the cord to the breathing tube and waved it in his face. "You have a breathing tube! You sound terrible and you don't look so hot either."

"I don't look hot? Damn, that hurts."

Kristina's worried expression melted away as she giggled at her boyfriend's foolishness. She wiped her tears away with her arm before she leaned down and kissed his cheek.

"And now cheek kisses? My parents and sister aren't even here! I am so not feeling the love." he crossed his arms over his chest, faking a pout.

She laughed once again and met his lips with her own. "Better?" she asked, looking him straight in the eyes.

Mike smiled. "Much." He yawned, stretching his arms out.

"Oh, those sleeping pills must be kicking in," Kristina reasoned, grabbing her bag. "Call me if you need anything?"

Mike nodded as she walked out the door. She had barely made her way down the hall when her phone rang. She stopped dead in her tracks and looked at the caller ID: Mike.

"Hello?"

"You know how you said that I could call you if I needed anything?"

"Yes, that was less than a minute ago, Mike. Is something wrong?"

"Yes, you see, as soon as you left I realized something."

"And what was that?"

"I need you here, please."

Kristina laughed and started walking back to his hospital room. "You are such a loser," she giggled before hanging up and walking inside.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria's phone chimed and she took it out of her purse, unlacing her fingers with Ezra's.

**From: UNKNOWN**

**Look familiar?**

Aria looked at the picture. It was mike in his hospital bed. "A" was in her brother's room. Aria gasped when she read the second part of the text.

**It will end with this.**

The picture attached was a picture of the lacrosse team, but something was missing.

Mike.

His face was cut out of the picture. Aria looked back at the first picture and her heart stopped.

The breathing tube disconnected. The breathing tube that Mike _needed_ after his second surgery wasn't there.

Aria ran to his new hospital room. She was a mere 20 feet away from the door when she saw a figure walking out of the room. The person was dressed in all black, had a black face mask on and completed the sketchy look with a pair of sunglasses. She couldn't tell if the person was male or female, the clothes were considerably baggy and the person was too far to get a clear view of them. The person turned towards her and grinned through the face mask, giving her a small wave.

Aria felt it in her gut. This was "A".

But now she was left with a heartbreaking decision: save Mike or catch "A".

**Before I start, can I say one thing? Mike. Is. An. Asshole.**

**Did you see him in that last episode? I wanted to rip his full-of-myself head off of his lying body. Ugh, see this? I use to love Mike, and now I want to throw up. I LOVE YOU MIKE PLEASE BECOME A GOOD PERSON AGAIN!**

**Ahem, um, anyway.**

**Sooooo, you hate me, I get it. How could I do that to you? Leave you with THAT cliffy? I don't know. But this is where it gets fun.**

**Does she save Mike or catch "A"?**

**I'm leaving it up to you guys. Leave a review and tell me. Make it very distinct, too. Because if I'm not sure what your answer is, I won't count it. And it will go 100% off of the reviews. My opinion doesn't count at all. And remember, when you get surgeries on your abdominal area you NEED a breathing tube. Need, need. Not kinda need. You think I'm wrong? Ask Google. XD **

**Soooo, more Ezria drama next chapter. That's when Byron finds out! Le gasp! Hahaha**

**Review please!**

**Can we try to reach 200? That's only 5 reviews! PLEASE?**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	15. Mother, May I?

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 14-Mother, May I?**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**Before I start I need to say something: I am about to write Marlene King a VERY strongly worded letter. Mike broke into the houses? Mike stole the camping gear? MIKE threatened Aria? MIKE SHOVED ARIA INTO A GODDAM TABLE? What. The. Hell. Why, Mike was a badass perv in the books and I LOVED IT. He was a sweet kid with an average teenage mind. Now they characterize him as an asshole? Unacceptable. This can't happen. It just can't. Now I wanna kill Mike off in my story….**

_Ahem… On with the story…_

**General POV**

_Aria ran to his new hospital room. She was a mere 20 feet away from the door when she saw a figure walking out of the room. The person was dressed in all black, had a black face mask on and completed the sketchy look with a pair of sunglasses. She couldn't tell if the person was male or female, the clothes were considerably baggy and the person was too far to get a clear view of them. The person turned towards her and grinned through the face mask, giving her a small wave._

_Aria felt it in her gut. This was "A"._

_But now she was left with a heartbreaking decision: save Mike or catch "A"._

Aria saw the figure take out a phone and type vigorously on it. Her phone chimed seconds later and she looked at the text.

**UNKNOWN**

**Catch me if you can-and make sure you wear something nice at Mike's funeral. –A**

Aria clenched her fists tight. She didn't know what to do. "A" was standing there waiting and Mike was sitting there dying.

That's when it hit her. _Mike was dying_. Her baby brother who had such a bright future was dying. Aria ran into the room and saw Mike lying there asleep with Kristina resting in his arms. The tube was still disconnected, but she could tell that he was breathing fine by the way Kristina's body moved up and down slightly. Plus, he was snoring. Dead people don't snore.

"You're Aria Montgomery, right?" a voice asked from behind him.

She turned around to see a doctor. "Yes, why?"

"I just thought I'd let you know we took the breathing tube out, he's doing exceptionally and will be moved out of critical condition once he wakes."

Aria's eyes grew wide. "A" was bluffing. She ran out of the room to see an empty hallway. Cursing under her breath she started walking back towards the waiting room when someone pushed past her.

"Hey! Watch it," Aria spat.

"Sorry," the person turned around and Aria saw it was Hardy.

"Hardy? What are you doing here?" she asked, readjusting her purse on her shoulder.

"Just some… personal business." He started walking away when something fell out his pocket. Aria was about to call after him, but she noticed what it was. A black facemask. Aria's face paled. Hardy wasn't "A", he couldn't be, _could he_? Aria shook off the silly thought and walked back to the waiting room, shoving the facemask in her purse.

"What was that about? Are you okay?" Ezra asked once she walked back in the room.

"Yeah, I'm fine, I was just… I missed a call from Hanna and then she sent me and S.O.S. text, but it turns out she lost her favorite heels and she's going on a date tonight, so she wanted to know if I had them."

"Typical Hanna," Ezra smirked, noticing Ella was eyeing him the whole time.

"What is happening here? Oh, Ezra, are you here to check up on Mike? If so, he's fine, no need to stay here with us; we might drive you mad," Byron chuckled as he set his briefcase down. "Oh, but while you're here, do you happen to know if that English department's meeting got moved or not?"

Ezra cleared his throat uneasily. "It was, actually. As a matter of fact it was cancelled. The head of the department, Professor Riley had a family emergency."

"Oh, well then that gives me time to run to get some food. Anybody want something?"

"Actually, Byron, you need to sit down," Ella said, clenching her jaw tightly.

"Oh? May I be so privileged to ask why?"

"Because Ezra isn't here for Mike; he's here for Aria."

"What? Is she hurt? Is it about lacrosse? Because Aria really needs the hours of service or she-"

"Byron! Stop it. It has nothing to do with Aria's well-being. It has to do with her damn teenage hormones."

Ezra, Aria, and Byron all looked at her with shock. "What?"

"Aria, I tried to be okay with this but I'm not. I can't pretend like this is acceptable!"

"What's not acceptable?" Byron asked, clearly missing the big picture.

"Mom, you're supposed to be the reasonable parent! You need to understand I-" Aria tried to explain, but Ella wasn't about to have any of it.

"Have lost your mind? You're damn right."

"What's going on here?" Byron asked again, still missing what was sitting right in front of him.

"Mom, what is so hard about accepting this? You know how I feel."

"About _what_?" Byron yelled.

"I'm dating, Ezra, Dad. Are you okay now? You're in the goddamn loop!"

"Ezra Fitz?" Byron asked with shock.

"No! Ezra the pet groomer! Duh, Ezra Fitz, that's why he's sitting right there!" Ella yelled gesturing to Ezra who hadn't gotten the opportunity to speak yet.

"Holy crap," Ezra mumbled to himself.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"You know I have to study, stop that," Kristina insisted as Mike kissed her neck. She sat in between his legs, which probably wasn't the best idea since she was studying for Algebra and he got excused from all of his assignments for the next two week-only having to make up tests.

Mike groaned slightly before pulling the collar of Kristina's shirt aside as he kissed her shoulder. He mumbled the answer to her and she looked at him in shock.

"I-I think that's right. You-Have you known that all along? I've been working on this problem for the last 15 minutes. Are you sure that's right?"

Mike rolled his eyes and walked her through the problem.

"_Damn,"_ Kristina breathed out after Mike confirmed he was correct. "God, have I ever told you how much I hate it when you're right?"

"Only a few times," Mike mumbled. He kissed her neck again, causing Kristina to laugh.

"Mikey!" Kristina jumped away from Mike at the sound of her mother's voice. She stumbled a little, but ended up landing on the floor on two feet.

"Mommy!" Mike joked, hugging Mrs. Bradson when she opened her arms to him.

Mrs. Bradson giggled. "Aw, still having a sense of humor in the hospital. How cute."

"I do try," Mike smirked. Kristina rolled her eyes and asked, "Why are you here, mom?"

"Oh, I brought you a treat!" Mike turned his attention to the basket she was holding.

"Don't tell me it's-"

"My infamous chocolate chip cookies? Yes. Your favorite blueberry muffins? Yes. A few boxes of candy? Yes!"

"No way!" Mike dove into the basket. "Real food." He smiled, shoving a cookie in his mouth. He offered Kristina a cookie and she took it, smiling. "Have I ever told you how much I love your mother?"

"Oh, honey, aren't you sweet," Mrs. Bradson blushed. She ruffled his hair a little and grinned, mumbling under her breath, "He's a keeper."

"Mom, what bothers you about our relationship?"

"That he's _7 years_older than you."

"Dad is 6 years older than you."

"Your father cheated on me."

"And Ezra's too decent of a person to do that."

"Hey now!" Byron intervened. "I'm a decent person; everyone makes mistakes."

"Yes, and Aria's making a big one right now," Ella shot back.

"What?" Aria cried.

"Aria, don't you see? You use to want to travel the world, do something great with your life. You've had great offers from exceptional colleges all over the world and now you want to go to Hollis? I never understood it until now. You're grounding yourself because of him."

"And I'm okay with that, mom, because he's someone I'm willing to let go of everything for."

"But you're losing so much!"

"And I don't care. Stop acting my age."

"Listen, young lady, I am not about to-"

Aria's phone rang throughout the room, interrupting the fight completely. Aria glanced down at the screen.

_**Incoming Call From: Hardy**_

"I'm sorry, I have to take this call," Aria apologized, getting up and answering her phone.

Ezra slid closer to Ella and Byron.

"Do you really think that?" he asked.

"Think what?" Ella asked.

"That me being with Aria is destroying her life? That I'm tearing her away from many great opportunities? That I'm closing open doors for her?"

Ella thought for a moment before responding. "Yes. It's keeping her from her full potential and I don't like it."

"Then I'll leave."

"Excuse me?"

"If me being with Aria is such a threat to her future then I'll leave Rosewood. I'll be gone by tomorrow morning, and I'll never look back and I won't even say goodbye."

**Hahaha Lordy, Lordy, I would pay to see some of you guys' faces, because I bet half of them were priceless.**

**Okay, lots of you said that Ella's reaction was very relaxed. I didn't want that, so I let more… severe emotions out. I told you people, I give you what you ask for! :D**

**So, I have another question for you guys.**

**Does Ezra leave, does Byron/Ella stop him, or does Aria stop him?**

**So, basically, do you want the next chapter to be sad, average, or mushy/fluffy.**

**I'm only leaving it up to you cuz I can't decide AT ALL.**

_**OKAY**_

**I know I vented in the beginning about the episode, but I just have one last thing I need to vent out.**

**Why is Ezra so STUPID? I mean, the man is H-O-T **_**HOT **_**black, but what's up with all the student crap?**

"**I um, talked to aria and I um, realized that I-um should be here for all of my students to support them."**

**Really? Does he WANT to lose his girlfriend? Ugh, that was such a good yet downer episode.**

_**In other news**_

**I got an Instagram and that's been my newest obsession. Add me if you have one, I'm IBEandrea. :P**

**ONE MORE THING**

**Okay, I threw that hardy being "A" mess in there, and you'll see what THAT'S all about. You never know, he might be… O.o**

**Next chapter will be epic, no matter which path you chose the story to go down.**

**Okay, 33 reviews for the last chapter? A-MAZING. I LOVE YOU GUYS! :D You always seem to amaze me with your awesomeness. THANK YOU! :D**

**Review please :D**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	16. Gone By Morning

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 16-Gone By Morning**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Aria's phone rang throughout the room, interrupting the fight completely. Aria glanced down at the screen. _

_**Incoming Call From: Hardy**_

"_I'm sorry, I have to take this call," Aria apologized, getting up and answering her phone._

_Ezra slid closer to Ella and Byron._

"_Do you really think that?" he asked._

"_Think what?" Ella asked._

"_That me being with Aria is destroying her life? That I'm tearing her away from many great opportunities? That I'm closing open doors for her?"_

_Ella thought for a moment before responding. "Yes. It's keeping her from her full potential and I don't like it."_

"_Then I'll leave."_

"_Excuse me?"_

"_If me being with Aria is such a threat to her future then I'll leave Rosewood. I'll be gone by tomorrow morning, and I'll never look back and I won't even say goodbye."_

"Be gone by tomorrow," Byron spat.

"I will be. And don't worry, Aria will hate me forever, especially if I don't say goodbye." Ezra scoffed a little when neither of them said anything. He backed away from them slowly, but then turned and started walking away at an average pace.

"Oh, and Ezra?" Byron called.

Ezra spun around. "Yes sir?"

"Remember, _no looking back_."

Ezra sighed heavily, running his hands through his hair. "Yes, sir. I know."

"Oh, are you leaving?" he heard Aria call to him. He shut his eyes tight, prepping himself to lie to her. But her previous words ran through his head_: Until now you were the only guy that's never lied to me. _But he was doing this for her. This was for_ her. _Ezra turned around, facing her, offering up a weak smile.

"Yeah, I probably should be getting home."

"Oh, well, then I'll see you later?" She leaned up to kiss him and Ezra saw that her parents had disappeared, probably to go check on Mike. As soon as her lips meant his he deepened the kiss, knowing it would be their last. Aria groaned and tangled her fingers in his hair, and Ezra just held her closer. Aria pulled away abruptly and gave him a look. "Why are you kissing me like that?"

"Like what?"

"Like you're never going to see me again? And you have that same look on your face that one night when we thought Noel was going to tell. What's wrong?"

She wasn't making this easy for him at all. "I-I'm just scared, okay? This whole "A" thing is freaking me out. Next time I may be in the hospital because you got hurt and I-"

"Oh, stop it. Don't think that way. Go and take a nap or something, calm your nerves a little. I'll see you later," Aria smiled, giving him a kiss on the cheek. "Love you."

"Love you too, so much." He grabbed her hand gently, as he walked away, only letting go once they couldn't reach each other anymore. She blew him a kiss playfully and waved.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"You know, you could start your own business with these muffins, Mrs. B," Mike said, taking another bite of the muffin. "You'd be, like, a bajillionare."

"A bajillionare?" Kristina asked. Mike nodded, causing her to roll her eyes. "You're lucky you're cute, cuz you sure are_ so_ stupid sometimes."

Mike just chuckled and started singing, "I wanna be a bajillionare, so freakin' bad. Eatin' all the muffins that I can."

Kristina laughed hard at this, and Mrs. Bradson just smiled.

"Enjoying yourself?"

Mike turned to see his mother standing in the doorway. "Yes, mommy," Mike replied in a sing-song voice.

"That's good, honey. And hello, Mrs. Bradson," Ella hugged her and smiled.

"Please, call me Alice," she laughed.

Ella hugged Kristina tightly. "And Kristina, you've been cooped up in here so long, how about you grab a bit of fresh air. There's this deli across the street that's just wonderful, you should go and grab something."

Kristina rocked on her heels, but nodded. "Okay, you want anything Mike?"

"Eh, surprise me. Oh! And get me a soda, please. I haven't had one in ages," Mike responded. He gave her a peck on the lips and Ella handed her some cash.

"I'll be back in 20 minutes tops," she mumbled, pulling her blonde hair into a messy ponytail.

"Did you get it?" Mike asked, moving towards his mother.

Ella laughed, "Yes, here." She handed Mike a heart bead with the words _I love you_ on it. He considered this whole hospital visit one big date, so he had to get her a bead. Sadly he couldn't actually eave, so he sent his mother out to get the bead for him.

"It's perfect; she's going to love it," Mike smiled.

"This idea of yours is very clever, how did you come up with it?" Ella asked.

"It's not my idea, actually. It was Ezra's," Mike confessed. "Aria told me you knew."

"It was his idea? How-"

"I was having one-on-one practices with him and he saw I liked her, so he helped me ask her on a date and he thought of the idea."

"_Really_?" Alice laughed. "How nice of him."

"Yeah… how nice of him," Ella mumbled.

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Ezra turned the lights off in his apartment knowing it would be empty by morning. The small amount of furniture would be moved to his brother's apartment in New York, where he would be crashing until he found his own place. He already had many job offerings in New York, so that wasn't a problem at all. The problem was leaving. And he'd be crashing with his older brother, his wife and 3-year-old son because his girlfri-_ex-girlfriend's_ parents didn't like him and forced him out. He would never live it down.

His thoughts drifted to the lacrosse team. What would they do? Their next game was the first of the tournament, the one they were so determined to win. Ezra highly doubted they could do it without him; it took the team a month to warm up to him and get comfortable with his coaching style, if they got a new coach they'd never make it. They'd become stubborn and would lose. Just like that. Even if Hardy took over, they were doomed.

And what about Hardy? Aria was talking to him, why? Why would hardy turn to Aria rather than him? Did it concern him? Was Aria in trouble?

He hoped not. If Aria was in some sort of trouble and he left he could never forgive himself.

Ezra shook his head. He refused to think about Aria. If he did then he wouldn't leave. He had to let go; this was for her and only her. He was putting her before himself, because that's what she deserved.

He was glad he stopped getting those calls and texts from her, though. It was a solid hour of nonstop calls and texts. Her last voicemail broke his heart, and he got so aggravated with himself that he threw his phone across the room because of it. He pulled his phone out and listened to the voicemail once more.

"_Hey, Ezra. You aren't answering your pone so I guess you're asleep. Call me when you wake up; if I don't answer leave a message. I love hearing your voice, as cheesy as that sounds. I'm glad everything went well with my parents, by the way. They aren't 100% for the idea, but they'll warm up to you, I promise. And if they don't we can run away together."_ Aria laughed there, a pure genuine laugh that made Ezra smile. He knew that was the last time he'd hear her laugh, and it made him want to cry. "_Wouldn't that be nice? Running away forever, going to a place where no one would judge. Oops, I only have 30 seconds left for this voicemail. I didn't know there was a time limit, but oh well. I love you so much and I'll see you tomorrow? I wish I could sleep over, but my mom might strangle you if I did. Oh god! 10 seconds left for this thing! Er, love you, talk to you later! Oh, I almost forgot Hardy needs yo-__**Beep. Voicemail was ended because it wasn't ended within it's time limit. We are sorry for this inconvenience."**_

After he wiped the tears from his eyes after listening to the voicemail for the hundredth time he realized something. Hardy needs what? Was he in trouble? He figured that if it was that important Aria would have just called back. He sighed and put his phone back in his pocket, grabbing the box he packed marked _necessities_ and headed for the door. Before he turned the doorknob someone else did.

Before he knew it hardy was in his apartment, in complete hysterics. Ezra dropped the box as Hardy grabbed him by his shoulders. "Ezra, I need your help. I screwed up, man."

**So, I was thinking about ending the story with this chapter, Ezra trying to leave, Aria catching up to him and telling him not to leave, ****happily ever after****: the average sappy crap that we all read. But you all know by now that I am too original for that. How boring would that be? And then I remembered the whole lacrosse thing, I can't leave that hanging! And I thought of the ultimate ending, btw. In a few chapters you are going to get a cliffy that might kill you. Haha Ezra's leaving was just a build up, everything is going to come together... Eventually.  
>What's your guess on Hardy's secret?<strong>

**Oh, next chapter is as fluffy as hell. I almost puked when I thought of the idea. Blech. But you fluff lovers will adore it :)  
>Okay, may I say something really quick? I realized something; all of Ezra's college friends call him "Z"? <strong>_**LIE**_**. I watched the episode with Hardy in it again, and he didn't call Ezra "Z" ONCE. Not once. AND HE'S HIS BEST FRIEND. And did you see Jackie's devious smile when she called him that? My bet is that it's a pet name she came up with.**

**About Jackie... Do I need to include her person in this story? She's in just about every other Ezria story and IDK if you want her... I won't make her a total slut or anything, I'll keep her as IC as possible.**

**30 Reviews for the last chapter! Woooooo! THANK YOU GUYS! I 3 you all!**

**Haha I loved reading your comments too. None of them wanted Ezra to leave. Hahaha You guys crack me up. :P**

**Review please?**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	17. Don't Leave Me Now

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 17-Don't Leave Me**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**General POV**

_Before he [Ezra] knew it Hardy was in his apartment, in complete hysterics. Ezra dropped the box as Hardy grabbed him by his shoulders. "Ezra, I need your help. I screwed up, man."_

Ezra nearly lost his balance at the sudden impact. "Okay, calm down? What did you do? Ugh, you didn't get another girl pregnant, did you? I've heard this story way too many times and I don't need to hear it again. I mean, really how many-"

"Shut up!" Hardy demanded. He removed his hands from Ezra's shoulders and started pacing. He stopped pacing suddenly, turning to his best friend. "You'll always be my best friend, right?"

"…Hardy, you're scaring me."

"Answer the question."

Ezra placed a hand on Hardy's shoulder. "Hardy, I-"

"_Answer the goddamn question!" _Hardy demanded, shaking Ezra's grip off.

"Yes, we've been best friends forever, literally. Why?"

"I screwed up. I screwed up _bad_."

"So I've heard," Ezra rolled his eyes.

"I'm being serious, Ezra. And I'm pretty sure you'll hate me forever if I tell you."

Ezra almost made a sarcastic comment when something clicked. "Is it Aria? Is that why you were talking to her? Did you do something to her? She'd better be okay or I'll-"

"Calm down. She isn't hurt." He sighed heavily before continuing. "Dude, look, someone knows something about me that could destroy me a-and they promised to fix my screw up if I did something for them…"

"Hardy, what did you do?" Ezra asked slowly.

"Let me tell you the story from the beginning," Hardy suggested, sitting on the couch. "You might want to sit down."

"What happened?"

"Hannah."

Ezra raised his brow. "Marin?"

"I kissed her," Hardy blurted, covering his mouth afterwards. "And she may have kissed back but I can't date her because that is so wrong and-"

"Dude!"

"What?"

Ezra gave him a "duh" look, and then Hardy caught on. "Oh, yeah, story-of-your-life. Gotcha. But what do I do?"

"Follow your heart," Ezra stated definitely. "That's all you can do."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

"You understand?" The doctor asked once more.

"Yes, those pills right there will help me heal but make me loopy. There will be a nurse watching me making sure I don't do anything stupid while in my unstable state. You've already told my mom and sister about this, so they can't come visit me during those hours I'm on the pill. I'm not suppose to see my girlfriend, either, but I'm going to ignore that. Anymore?"

The doctor chuckled, handing him the pill and a water. Mike swallowed it and took a swig of water, then the doctor walked away satisfied.

Mike was about to grab his phone to call Kristina, but he heard her voice ring throughout the room.

"Hey, Mike, I got your sandwich and the biggest soda they had, unless you wanted to drink it out of a bucket," Kristina said as she walked into the room.

"What took you so long? It's been almost an hour," Mike asked, reaching for his soda.

She rolled her eyes and gave it to him. "Nothing. Where's my mom and Ella?"

"Uh-oh," Mike sighed.

"Uh-oh? That's never good."

"It took you an hour at a deli store across the street? And I know you, you tell me everything. You never tell me "nothing" when I ask a question like that. You tell me down to every detail always. So what's wrong?"

"Nothing, Mike."

He went to grab her arm, but she pulled back from him, something he'd never seen her do. His look softened when she looked at him again, looking more vulnerable than she did when the Richland boys were holding her against her will. "Kristina, you can tell me anything. What happened?"

"I told you, nothing happened!" Kristina insisted, throwing Mike's sandwich at him. He failed to catch it, and the wrapped sandwich landed on his stomach, causing him to yelp.

Kristina gasped. "Oh, I am so sorry; I didn't mean to hurt you! Are you okay?" She ran to him, taking the sandwich and setting it on the table beside him. He smiled, trying to lie with his eyes and tell her he was okay. But he couldn't help but let a tear slide down his cheek, because, honestly, it hurt like hell.

Kristina sat down in one of the chairs, holding her head in her hands. "I am such a screw up."

"You are not! You're beautiful, and smart, and funny and strong and-"

"No, Mike, I'm not. That's just what you see, and it's not true."

"Kristina, I-"

"I don't think this can work," she blurted out. She slipped her date bracelet off and sighed, "Here, this is yours. And, I'm sorry." She set the bracelet in his hand and made her way to the door. She stopped, remembering something, and went to her neck, unclasping the necklace around it. She faced Mike once more, seeing a look of disbelief and confusion, and most of all, hurt. "This is also yours. It's the necklace string that I asked you to let me keep from our first date. I haven't taken it off since then." She set it in his hand and smiled weakly. "Until now, of course."

She looked at him once more before making her way out the door. Mike screamed in frustration and threw the charm for her bracelet at the door.

Once she heard the door close behind her she trembled. "I love you; I never meant to hurt you."

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria dashed into the airport. She slid all things that might set off the metal detector quickly, then made her way through, only grabbing her keys and phone from the tray. Rosewood wad a small town, so their airport wasn't exactly the biggest thing ever, but about 50% of the men scattered throughout the building had Ezra's same haircut, build, and stance. Aria just settled for running through, tapping every man who could possibly be Ezra on the shoulder. She stopped the second she heard her name.

"Aria?"

She whipped her head around at the familiar voice. She smiled, running towards him quickly. She stopped right in front of him, breathing heavily. "Hardy! Where's Ezra?"

"Ezra? He went that way to-" As soon as Hardy pointed to where Ezra had gone through, Aria dashed through the people and security guards. She screamed his name desperately, not knowing what else to do. She was getting closer and closer to the security gate, and she couldn't go past that point without a ticket-which she didn't have. She kept screaming until she saw a pair of bright blue eyes staring at her with a mix of shock, fear, and love. "Ezra," she whispered out.

She ran to him as fast as she could, opening her arms and flinging them around him, almost causing him to fall over. His body stiffened, but eventually relaxed into her hold.

"I can't I have to-"

"No you don't. My parents told me what they said and sent me here to stop you."

"Oh," he replied softly, hugging her a little tighter.

"Don't leave me again, please."

"I won't, that's a promise. I didn't mean to hurt you this bad."

"What hurts the most is that you didn't even say goodbye."

Before Ezra was given a chance to respond, Aria's phone rand loudly. She excused herself to the bathroom, which was surprisingly nearly silent, and answered her phone.

"Hey, Aria," Mike said flatly from the other end. There was rustling and loud noises blaring too, so Aria could barely understand a word he was saying.

"Mike? Is that you? I can barely hear you! Where are you?"

"On the top of the hospital building."

"What? Why?"

"I'm going to jump."

"What?" Aria thought of why he would do something so stupid, and finally came up with the reason. "Mike, you need to listen to me, it's those Meds talking. You can't think straight. Look, go find Kristina. She'll watch you until I get there and take care of you."

"Not anymore. She broke up with me." Mike held in a sob, but a tear ran down his left cheek, mixing with the rain water immediately. He started to raise his voice, "She doesn't love me! It was all a lie!"

"No it wasn't! She-she was probably doing it for your own good! She loves you so much, Mike, don't do it!"

"Goodbye Aria. Forever."

And then he hung up.

**The end.**

**Hehe Nah, I've still got more up my sleeve. Maybe. I know Mike is pissing us all off, so I'll kill him if no one wants him to stay. I decided to brush the whole Hardy thing off. I like Hardy too much to make him do that. He was going to be A's assistant, and then I was going to kill him off, but Patrick J. Adams is just too cute! I can't do that! Hahahahaha**

**NEXT**

**I want to start a FictionPress account, because I have an idea that I think will be great when expressed in words. I have NO CLUE if this idea has been used before-probably-but I want to write about it anyway. Please write a review and tell me what you think about the FP account, and if I do you people better be reading! Haha**

**Oh, and before I even start, I've learned that everything I post on FF, even my ideas, are copyrighted to me. So, steal the idea and I will not be happy, and I will have proof that it is mine and you had no right to steal it. Just saying…..**

**I rushed through this chapter because I had a 30 minute window to write this, so I typed it up and WHOA, was it rushy. I may re-do it tomorrow if I don't get at least 15 reviews :D**

**MAH IDEA:**

**Story Title: CHAT**

**IDEA: (Drafted) 3 friends. 3 computers. 3 screen names. 1 website that brought them together. They've never met in person, but they're the best of friends. Well, as close as friends can get when communicating through computers and telephones. But once one falls for another, it's up to the last to bring them together. But that's hard to do through IM's, texts, phone calls, and over a thousand miles, especially when they're both to stubborn to even remotely admit the slightest attraction to the other. It's the most basic tale of trust, friendship and love, but with the ultimate twist. (Interested? Pm me for more deets.)**

**What do you think? ^^**

**Okay, try to imagine a movie about it. Eh, eh? Yeah, okay, you think it's bad D:**

**Review Please? PWEASE? MIKE DEAD OR NOT?**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	18. Do No Wrong

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 18-Do No Wrong**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**Written for ****StarWriter101, who got me off of my last butt and told me to write.**

_Also written because there are no good Ezra fics that have been updated lately. They're all too mushy. This is for a taste of IS A DRAMA NOT A FLUFFY ROMANCE! Just saying ;)_

**General POV**

_Before Ezra was given a chance to respond, Aria's phone rand loudly. She excused herself to the bathroom, which was surprisingly nearly silent, and answered her phone._

_"Hey, Aria," Mike said flatly from the other end. There was rustling and loud noises blaring too, so Aria could barely understand a word he was saying._

_"Mike? Is that you? I can barely hear you! Where are you?"_

_"On the top of the hospital building."_

_"What? Why?"_

_"I'm going to jump."_

_"What?" Aria thought of why he would do something so stupid, and finally came up with the reason. "Mike, you need to listen to me, it's those Meds talking. You can't think straight. Look, go find Kristina. She'll watch you until I get there and take care of you."_

_"Not anymore. She broke up with me." Mike held in a sob, but a tear ran down his left cheek, mixing with the rain water immediately. He started to raise his voice, "She doesn't love me! It was all a lie!"_

_"No it wasn't! She-she was probably doing it for your own good! She loves you so much, Mike, don't do it!"_

_"Goodbye Aria. Forever."_

_And then he hung up._

Aria's mind raced a million miles a minute. The only thing she could think was: run. She ran towards the exit as fast as she'd entered the airport, leaving Ezra in her dust. She could her him chasing after her, but she didn't care much. Knowing Mike, she had about 5 minutes until he jumped-if he jumped. The kid was so damn indecisive, and this was the first time Aria was happy about that. Aria realized that even if she had 5 minutes, she'd never make it. The airport was 5 minutes from the Hospital, but she still had to get out of the airport, which would take at least another 5 minutes. She pulled out her phone and texted her mother: _Mike, hospital, suicide, HELP. _She honestly didn't have time to type more, and typing while running was hard as it was. Right as she hit send she ran into someone.

Aria, as petite and light as she was, fell back because of the collision, landing on her back, causing her to yelp.

"Aria! I am so sorry!" Aria's eyes shot open. She knew that voice anywhere.

"Kristina?" Kristina's bright blue eyes stared into Aria's, her blonde hair falling around her face and almost touching Aria's cheeks because of its length-and Kristina's small stature. She offered a hand to Aria and Aria took it gladly. Aria brushed herself off once on her feet again, and heard more footsteps running to her.

"Aria? Are you okay!" Hardy and Ezra said in definite unison once they reached her.

Hardy looked at Kristina and asked, "Who's the chick?"

Ezra just rolled his eyes. "Kristina? What are you doing here?"

"Um, I-I'm going to California."

Aria looked at her with disbelief. "Excuse me?"

"My dad called and he had partial custody of me now, they've been in court debating about it, so now I get to see him for the first time in 10 years." Kristina's voice quivered a little when she spoke.

"That's why you broke it off with Mike," Aria whispered to herself.

"Yeah, I-Long distance relationships never work and I didn't need him worrying and, you know how protective he is, it just wouldn't have been good. I got the call while I was in the deli, and now I'm with my dad for the next 2 weeks."

Aria snapped back into reality. Mike. She had less than 3 minutes to save her little brother. "You know what? I really don't have time for this, Mike is about to jump off of a building-probably because of you-and I just can't do this…"

"He's about to what!" Kristina shrieked.

"Well, you kinda ripped his heart out without any explanation, he's on some wonder drug medication, so he's just about hit an all time low-"

Hardy sighed, "God, I love that band…"

Ezra hit Hardy upside the head. "Shut up, dude."

Kristina, on the other hand, started pacing. "Oh my god what have I done?"

"I'm not sure at this point but if we don't get leaving now then you'll have killed my little brother, so let's get a move on, shall we?"

**PLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLLPLL**

Aria ran out of the car, Kristina on her tail. She snatched a bullhorn from one of the officers, who was trying to console Mike, and turned it on. "Mike!"

"Go away, Aria!" Mike screamed over the sirens and chatter. Everyone silenced themselves when they heard him speak, so Aria continued.

"Mike, why are you doing this?"

"You know why, Aria-it was all fake!" Mike shouted, throwing the date bracelet down. It landed only a few feet away from Kristina. She took a deep breath and bent down, picking the bracelet up carefully. She held it in her fist tightly and shut her eyes closed, whispering to Aria, "Let me talk to him."

Aria looked at Kristina curiously, but gave her the bullhorn.

"M-Mike?" Kristina stuttered, her voice quivering.

Mike's eyes widened. His head darted from left to right, in search for her. "Kristina?"

"I need you to listen to me, Mike, you're unstable. Can you count to 10 for me please?" Kristina was still trembling, but she couldn't help it-she was scared to death.

Mike scoffed. "How do I know this isn't just another trick? What if you get me off of this building, huh? What are you going to do? Leave me again?" He took a daring step closer to the edge, his toes hugging the corner of the building.

Kristina screamed while everyone else gasped. She dropped the bullhorn and her hands flew to her eyes, shutting them tight, hands shaking. She looked completely scared and… heartbroken.

Ezra's eyes widened. That was it. He picked up the bullhorn from the ground. "Mike!"

"Ezra?" Mike called. The crown shushed themselves again, full attention on mike. Aria was holding Kristina close to her, and Kristina looked completely broken.

"Yeah. Before I start can you please take a step back?"

"I'm not falling for any crap," he said. "Say something interesting and I'll take a step back."

Ezra exhaled deeply. "Okay, fair enough. I need you to relive a moment for me, okay?"

"…Okay," Mike agreed.

"Good! Okay, think back 3 nights ago for me. Do you remember what happened?"

Mike scoffed. "Richland boys."

"Good, and do you remember what Kristina felt like?"

"…Scared," Mike whispered. He took a step back.

"What? Can you repeat that, please?"

"Scared!" Mike shouted.

"Can you see her now, Mike?" Ezra asked.

Mike shook his head, "It's too dark."

Ezra looked around him, "Flashlight anyone?" One of the officers handed him one carefully, and Ezra thanked him. He turned the flashlight on and directed it to Kristina. "How about now?"

"Yeah, I can."

"Does she look scared, Mike?"

Mike took a step forward to look at her more closely. "Yes, she does."

"Do you think she would be scared if she didn't give a damn about you?"

"No."

"Then why are you standing up there?"

Mike took another step back. "I'm not. I'm coming down."

"Good," Ezra smiled, turning the bullhorn off.

Aria's phone chimed. She stifined. She reached for her cell phone, hands shaking violently.

**Time's up. –A**

"_Mike!"_

Aria's head snapped up to see Mike falling off the roof.

And a black-clothed figure waving at her from the top.

**The End. Seriously; next chapter is the epilogue.**

**I won't even say anything. Just review. I won't update until I get to 320 reviews, though ^.^**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	19. The End Doesn't Hurt As Much

**Lacrosse Lovers**

_Summary-_ _Ian's dead so SOMEONE has to be the new lacrosse coach, and that's Mr. Fitz. And coincidentally the assistant coach is Aria. On Mike's lacrosse team. With Noel. So they have to be very careful. But Ezra can't help looking at Aria in those short shorts. Oh boy._

**Chapter 19-The End Doesn't Hurt So Much**

_I apologize in advance for any typos._

**Yup: I'm baaaaaaaaaaaaaaaack. Miss me? Didn't think so :$**

_Written for jumpoverthemoon because their review made my day c:_

**General POV**

_May 19__th__. It's the finals in the lacrosse tournament. Home: 9 Visitor: 9. 60 seconds on the clock. Mike has the ball. _

_Kristina stood in the stands, Mike's team lacrosse jacket falling off of her shoulders slightly as she jumped up and down, cheering him on. "Go Mike! C'mon, you can do it!"_

_Mike, knowing the guys chasing after him were a slight ways away, turned around-running backwards-and blew Kristina a kiss, making her giggle. He turned himself around, running in the direction that would get him the winning point. When he was only a mere yards away from the goal, the earth cracked a few feet away from him. The ground, shaking, started parting a huge hole. The violent thrusts of the earth were too much for Mike. He lost his balance and tripped and fell into the void the earthquake had made._

"_Mike!"_

Kristina shot up from the bed, sweat pouring down her face as she screamed. She felt Mike's arms wrap around her, his voice trying to soothe her. She just sobbed, trembling in his arms.

"Shh, it was just a nightmare," Mike cooed. Kristina clutched onto his shirt tightly, continuing to cry.

There was a knock on the door, followed by an immediate entrance by Aria and Ezra.

"What's going on?" Aria asked, taking in the sight before her. They had had dinner at her house that night, and like most other family dinners with Kristina and Ezra, Kristina would sleepover and end up falling asleep with Mike while Ezra talked to Byron about Hollis and Ella about literature. Most of the time Aria would throw in her opinion every now and then so the "adults" knew she was there while her head rested on Ezra's lap, but tonight she actually engaged in the conversation, for tonight they were speaking of her-and Ezra's-favorite book, To Kill A Mockingbird. So, the scream coming from upstairs didn't come unnoticed by her at all.

"Nightmares," Mike answered softly.

"Aw, Kristina," Aria cooed, going over to Kristina and taking Mike's place in comforting her. Mike kissed Kristina's head before letting Aria take full control. He stepped out of bed and closer to Ezra. He stood next to the slightly shorter man, rocking on his heels and biting his lip, keeping his arms crossed over his chest. He leaned in closer to him and whispered, "I'm worried about her. I'm running out of ideas; I don't know what to do anymore."

"Just be there for her, she needs you," Ezra answered simply, concentrating completely on Aria and Kristina.

"I know she does, but whenever I'm with her I feel like she thinks I'm not really there. Like I'm some kind of illusion playing with her mind."

Ezra let this information sink in before coming up with a response. "Where is her dad moving again?"

"Florida, why?"

"We should go there."

"What?"

"To get her mind off of it, you know? Let her escape a little."

Mike thought about this for a while, then commented, "And you think it will work?"

"It's worth a shot."

"Then Florida, here we come."

**You bitches thought Mike died, huh? How would there be a sequel with him in it then? Hahahahahaha But don't worry, the sequel is WAY less drama and WAY more comedy/fluff. And that's only because half of the time they're going to be partying/drunk or in a car, so, there wasn't much drama I could fit it BUT you all know I'll think of something :3**

**Plus, there may be a little oneshot called Booze, Bets, and Bitches coming up where Aria, Ezra, Mike and Kristina do a little drinking and betting, and let's just say there will be cheating, sabotage, and most importantly, a kiss that will SHOCK YOU ALL. hehe**

**ANYWAYS!**

**This chapter is a prequel/lead up type thing for the sequel which will come out soon enough. (:**

**REVIEW PLEASE! Tell me how you liked the last chapter!**

**O.M.F.G. THIS STORY IS ON 116 PEOPLE'S ALERT LIST :DDDDD I just saw that, and died of pure happiness! :D THANK YOU GUYS SO MUCH! :)**

**Okaybaii!**

**LACROSSE LOVERS=OVER**

**SEQUEL=COMING**

**ARE YOU EXCITED?=YES**

**BTW FOLLOW MY INSTAGRAM! I'm on a break from it now, but I'll be back soon enough!**

**Instagram is a FREE APP (Apple devices only) so get it&enjoy! It's SUPER addicting!**

**Main Account: ibeandrea**

**Photography Account: ibephotographinglove**

**Also, should I get a tumblr? Just Wondering!(:**

**Love Always,**

**-randomness**


	20. SEQUEL!

**Lacrosse Lovers now has a sequel, and the first chapter is up! It's called Finding Who You Really Are! Check it out :)**


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